Unlike millions of other high school seniors around the world, CESJDS’ Class of 2020 was able to have a prom, an in-person graduation ceremony and virtually every other senior experience ranging from sporting events, music concerts, spirit weeks and last day traditions. To top it all off, we still received three incredible weeks in Israel.

During the weeks following the Class of 2020’s premature departure from the Irene and Daniel Simpkins Senior Capstone Israel Trip due to the coronavirus pandemic, my classmates and I mourned the loss of what was supposed to mark the end of senior year and define our JDS experience. While we were grateful to have three weeks in Israel, the majority of us had spent our whole lives looking forward to this trip. We spent countless hours in Israel fearing the worst as COVID-19 became more prevalent.

Our fears were confirmed in the middle of the night on March 15 when we heard that the Jewish National Fund chartered a flight to send us home that following evening. While we were all devastated, it did not take us long to realize how truly fortunate we were to have had the opportunity to experience the majority of JDS senior traditions.

It is hard to relate to other high school seniors during this time because we are not taking classes and most of us do not have jobs, so we are sitting at home, finding other ways to occupy our time. Not taking classes may be a silver lining for some, but I miss having a school routine to give me structure.

While we do not share the same experiences of our public school peers, we understand what it is like to face uncertainty during this time. Several students are choosing to take gap years as we do not know whether college campuses will be open in the fall.

During what is supposed to be an exciting time of committing to college and planning our futures, we are unable to share these experiences with our friends. Our time together was cut short and we do not know when, or if, we will be able to see our classmates again. All we can do is work together to stay connected virtually in order to protect those around us and keep our relationships intact.

As I sit at home and reflect on the events of the past several months, I look back on my final semester at JDS with fondness and gratitude. We were incredibly lucky to have been able to fully experience our senior year, and even though our capstone trip ended early, I am certain that the Class of 2020 will emerge stronger and more united when all of this is over.