Thoughts on Life

2020 is WILD

WOW. 

It's felt like three years, and it's only June. 

Let me just list a few of the things that have happened in 2020 so far. (I live in the U.S.)

World War III threats

Kobe Bryant and his daughter died in a plane crash

Australia was on fire

Indonesia flooded

Trump was impeached

Ahmaud Arbery was killed

Breonna Taylor was killed by police, her boyfriend Kenneth Walker was arrested and later acquitted

COVID-19 spiked and we went into quarantine (my last day of school was March 11)

Murder hornets

George Floyd was killed by police

Protests everywhere: all 50 states, plus in other countries

Some of the protests were destructive near me

Police using tear gas and force to disperse protests about police brutality (seriously??)

Our esteemed president hiding in his bunker during protests and turning off White House lights for the first time in like 50 years 

I've been in quarantine for about three months. Today, if my count is correct, is day 90. My school musical, quiz bowl tournaments, two summer camps, pride, orchestra concerts, chorus next year, etc. are canceled. So that's not fun. For about two weeks in March-April, the school didn't give us any work, then started giving us work we were supposed to do, but that they couldn't grade. We've kind of set into a pattern by now: one or two video calls a day, and supposedly about 4 hours of work a day, but probably less than that. I also have video calls for piano and violin lessons. 

My sister had a birthday in quarantine, and a few of her friends came to our house with posters and presents. I also made a video for her with contributions from friends and family. 

A few days ago I went to a protest near my house. It was peaceful and socially distant, with everyone wearing masks. We walked about two miles and knelt for 8 minutes and 40 seconds. It was near a traffic light, and a bunch of cars honked as they went by or held up Black Lives Matter signs. I was a little worried about going, but it ended up being great. 

I've been trying to find ways to make a difference in these times. My friend and I learned how to make cloth masks and donated about 20 of them to a hospital near us. I've started to get art commissions, and I plan to donate half of the proceeds to places like the Trevor Project, NAACP, and COVID-19 charities. 

My main writing projects have been Sweepings of the Street and a more recent one-act play, At What Cost, which I will post shortly. I've also been updating my story covers using Canva.com. I have a writing Instagram account, amanda_denney_writes, in which I post edits excerpts from Sweepings of the Street and other pieces I've written. 

I'm going to be a junior in ten days, which is insane. Colleges are emailing me constantly, and I'm still not ready to think about graduating. Decisions are terrifying. 

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this little summary of my year. Hope the rest of you are surviving.