It is no longer “à la mode” to write about the pandemic and the economic crisis. They’re two subjects that have become quite a cliché. Right?

But might I say, how can we not?

Till this day, our parents tell us about their experiences during war, and how they were dodging bullets and missiles on their way to work, to school, to university... Now, we get the chance to tell our children about how we were dodging humans and viruses. We can tell them how it costs a kidney to get there, that is of course, if we even got the chance to leave our houses.

We have all taken a terrible hit, one way or another. We are all looking for a way to survive. Two years went by, but those two years felt like a lifetime. A lot of things happened, and two years later, we are still trying to figure things out. As if a pandemic wasn’t enough, we also have to suffer the consequences of a system that has failed us.

Amid all of this, one thing is for sure. We have learnt that time genuinely waits for no one and that you cannot know what tomorrow holds for you.  Most importantly though, some, if not all of us have learnt not to take simple things for granted. We have learnt the importance of things we can no longer do.

I wish I could be thankful for being able to hug someone and hopefully that will happen soon.

I am thankful for being able to attend classes on campus, NOT ONLINE (hopefully that’ll not change anytime soon)

I am thankful for having my loved ones safe and sound, even if some are abroad (long distance sisterhood isn’t the best, but thank you Technology for existing)

I am thankful for still being here. Yes, I’m on survival mode. But I am here. Hopefully, we can go back to living instead of surviving anytime soon.

But for now, what are you thankful for?

Sami-Joe Issa

M3- Traducteur-Rédacteur