Not What I Imagined

This time last year, October 2019, I dreamed of being a postgraduate student at my university of choice, studying things that really interests me.

I imagined going to classes with a cup of coffee in hand, meeting my classmates from all over the world, hanging around the bean bags at the colourful stairways at the university lobby, joining the society activities.

I got my wish for what I mentioned on the first paragraph. Everything in the second paragraph — it didn’t happen.

COVID-19 truly turned the world upside down. With everything adapting to a new normal, in my case, ALL of my classes are online. It was kinda ironic that I decided to stay in the university halls when I didn’t need to physically go to campus. And that my flatmates are undergrads half my age haha. Oh well.

Of course I am sad that this is not the overseas postgrad experience I envisioned. But I always like to stay positive and look on the bright side of things.

My classes are asynchronous so I could catch up & take notes of lectures in my own time — actual live sessions are more on discussions and exercises. That was fun and refreshing.

I could wake up 10 minutes before class, put on something nice from waist up and I would be ready for class. And since they were concerned on “screen time”, my classes are only about 1.5 hours to 2 hours long each.

I wouldn’t need to rush for my prayers or prepare packed food to go to class. I have free time in the evenings for my daily walks to the park next door or the town centre.

There wouldn’t be big crowds to manage daily. For someone who is an introvert most of the days and needs her personal space, this is welcomed.

Of course, there are downsides too. With course leaders and classmates scattered all over the world, managing group assignments can be though. Poor Internet connection can interfere with your live lessons. You hear “hello can you hear me?” all the time.

But yeah, you can’t win them all. We make it work. We always do.