A New Yorker’s Story: Sherry Weng
The pandemic has affected all of us in different ways. The effects for many have been positive after having faced major struggles. Although young ones initially might’ve felt it as a great change to have school from home, Sherry Weng, a teenager from Flushing, NY shares the story of how this pandemic affected her school work and what she has come to learn about herself from that experience. What she has to say, at only 16 years old, is a mature conclusion that we can all learn from no matter our age.
“When quarantine started, schools decided to go into remote learning. Instead of live lessons we had recorded lessons. Before then I had always been a straight A student and homework was never a problem, but then the all-nighters were definitely a problem. Before quarantine I would go until 1am doing school work and then going to school waking up at 5am, traveling all the way to Manhattan. It was tough. But during quarantine, when live lessons stopped, my sense of time also stopped. I am a very schedule-oriented person. But when quarantine started my schedule disappeared, also did my sense of time. My motivation to work disappeared. So during that time I sank and fell rock bottom, my grades were terrible. Every night I would go to bed feeling guilty. In the mornings I’d wake up and say: ‘ok, today is the day I’m going to get this done’. But then I always went to tomorrow and tomorrow.”
Sherry tells us that at her school they noticed the decline in performance. Sherry was contacted by her school. They helped her get setup with a therapist. Sherry tells us that the sessions helped her to realize points in which she had to work on and issues she didn’t know she had, such as procrastination, anxiety and being a perfectionist.
Sherry continues: “After I talked to the therapist they really cleared some things up for me and I was able to make up all of the assignments. After doing all of that, I realized that I have to put myself first. It’s not always going to be about grades for me. I realize that instead of being such a perfectionist and [being] hard on myself, I should just be accepting of who I am. I’m not always going to be perfect but I can continue to grow as a person.”
Sherry tells us she wants to go to college and be an artist. She is preparing now for that goal but she is taking it one step at a time. It’s inspiring to hear a 16 year old speak so maturely of her struggles and how she is learning from them to be a better self.
She concluded: “I want to do what I love as an artist and spread the message of the things that I like through my art. But rather than being remembered as an artist who changed the world, I want to be remembered as a kind person”. What a lesson! To be remembered for the quality of the person we are inside. Thank you Sherry for sharing this with us.