By Claudia Crawford
Senior, English Education, IUPUI
If you’re like me, you’ve probably been spending the past few weeks or more, indoors, in your pajamas, and in a constant state of “stir crazy.” As a college student now taking all of her classes virtually, I’ve been trying to keep myself busy, devoting a majority of my time to working on class assignments, playing Monopoly with my roommates, and trying not to lose my mind.
This is an intense way to finish out my senior year as an English Education major to say the least. Before all of this happened, I was just a normal college student, living with her three best friends a few blocks from campus. As student athletes, we were used to a steady routine: practice, class, practice, class, homework, sleep. College swimming is what got us out of bed and out of the house every morning. Now, with the pool closed until at least August, and classes being virtual, my roommates and I are confined to our not-so-large house with our not-so-friendly, furry companion, Simon the cat.
In the midst of all this chaos, surprisingly, heartwarming stories are not hard to come by. I easily find them by going on social media and it’s comforting to know that when worse comes to worse, the best of humanity steps in.
For example, I recently read an article about a fifteen-year-old girl, Maddie Loyd, from Lafayette. According to WLFI, this teenage girl has raised more than $3,600 to provide food to local healthcare workers. In partnership with a local pizza place, healthcare workers at several IU Health locations are getting free lunches and dinners.
"We care for them,” Maddie, whose father is a doctor, is quoted as saying. “Cause it's really scary to go out there, they have families and it's just really important for me and other people to just show that we care and we thank them."
Want to help Maddie help others? Her GoFundMe page can be found here.
Other community members are showing their support in a different way. According to The Indy Channel, a young Plainfield boy got the best birthday gift thanks to local law enforcement and neighbors. His mom messaged neighbors asking to help celebrate her son’s birthday in style. They all stepped outside and watched as the little boy waved to police cars as they paraded by his house with their lights flashing. The birthday boy, in his own police costume, waved to law enforcement and neighbors as they held up signs and shouted birthday well wishes. Even when parties and fun are mostly canceled, friends and family are still finding ways to celebrate milestones like these.
Lots of animals are also on the receiving end of community love. Shelters across the U.S. are seeing a mass influx of applications from animal lovers who wish to foster cats and dogs. In Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City shelters are seeing up to a 70% increase in foster applications. But the love goes beyond fostering; many are ultimately giving those animals a forever home.
"If history is a guide," says Jim Tedford, CEO of the Association for Animal Welfare Advancement, in a story for ABC News, "there is a great chance that a lot of those [pets] will become permanent fixtures in those households."
Another story comes from my very own backyard. I live in the neighborhood of Ransom Place. Just minutes from campus, this neighborhood is full of young college students, as well as others who have lived here a majority of their lives. Miss Kay, my next-door neighbor, has been living here for decades. She’s a retired nursing aide, breast cancer survivor, and the best cake baker in the neighborhood. Before all the social distancing started, Miss Kay was constantly taking care of those around her. She would bake cakes for people in the neighborhood, check in on the elderly residents, and chat with everyone who so much as walked down her street.
So it’s not surprising that she wasn’t about to let social distancing keep her from doing what she does best: Be a damn good neighbor. Last week, my roommates and I got a knock on our door only to open it to a box of groceries; Miss Kay had already gone back to her porch. She told us to take what we wanted. We did, and she continued to pass out more groceries to the houses down the street. We watched as residents opened their doors to this sweet gift. Even those who didn’t see Miss Kay deliver them didn’t have to guess whom the groceries were from. Miss Kay is just that kind of neighbor. Always willing to lend a hand.
Hearing all of these stories and seeing that kindness in my own neighbors has lead me to reflect on how I’ve spent these last few weeks. Have I been kind to others? Have I helped when I could? Asking myself these questions has made me realize that I should be taking notes from people like Ms. Kay. During trying times, it’s people like her who truly make a difference. From here on out, I want to give more, help more, and show that kindness more.