Ever since coronavirus hit the U.S., the entire country has changed drastically. Stay-at-home orders, mask requirements and a number of protests have occurred over this past year. On a more personal level, though, lives are changing. Relationships have been and are being affected.

Students at LSHS have been affected by changing relationships. Junior Jack Clark and freshmen Emma Kosofsky are two students who have experienced changes within their own relationship. Kosofsky and Clark actually began dating each other over quarantine.

“There were a few months where I was unable to see my significant other at all, which definitely put a lot of uncertainty on the relationship,” Kosofsky said.

It hasn’t been all bad for the couple, though. Distance brought some good to the relationship as well.

“[The distance] strengthened us since we’ve had the time to sit down and figure each other out, and had the time to do so,” Clark said.

Distance can make the heart grow fonder, at least in the case of Jack and Emma. Many couples have seen the effects of social distancing on their relationships, but have still been able to stick it out and make it work.

Romantic relationships aren’t the only kinds of relationships being affected by social distancing. Over quarantine, there’s been a drastic difference between students’ relationships with their friends and family as well. The distance, or even the overbearing closeness, has caused new insight.

“I’m learning a lot about the people around me. So now, I notice super different dynamics in my family because I’m around them all the time,” junior Amelia Gonzalez said.

Being stuck at home with family has been tough on relationships with parents and siblings. This last year, most students have been stuck inside at least 90% of the time, forced to interact with family more than usual. It’s not uncommon in this sort of situation to see a shift in bonds.

“I feel like I also learned a lot about [my family’s] reactions to everything because they’re who I’m around the most. Some of the flaws I saw as normal are now problematic when you have to be home all the time,” Gonzalez said.

Friendships are also being affected, with lack of time spent together putting a strain on them. There’s much less real communication involved through quarantine, making it difficult to keep in touch. With this, we see friends grow distant or fizzle out altogether.

Yet, there is promise in the distance, despite the negative possibilities. Many students have kept and even strengthened their friendships. This includes making new friends too!

“[Quarantine has] given me time to talk to all the people I maybe haven’t talked to in a while and gives me the opportunity to talk to people from a distance,” Clark said.

Even with distance, students make it work. Friendships will always be there, and it’s never too late to start talking to an old friend.

It’s hard to see the positives in our situation, when it feels like there are so many more negatives. We watch relationships fail, families fight and people walk out the door. It can be disheartening. Focusing on the ones who stick around and show us love is how we grow closer as a community, as a school. The glass is half full and has always been half full; it’s your choice to perceive it that way.

Quarantine has been quite the test on relationships. Don’t let the failures make you give up on the loved ones you still have. Call up your friends and hug your siblings. Take this opportunity to make the most out of a seemingly bad situation.