Editor's note: Marvin Sibanda remains on campus, living in his dorm, rather than traveling home to Zimbabwe during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The past few weeks have been very tough not only for me, but also for everyone that I know. It's obviously very hard to be far away from home, not knowing what is happening to my family during this scary time. The life that I have become used to, where I can go anywhere, anytime I want, is no longer possible because of all the restrictions that have been put in place.

When I first heard about COVID-19, I thought it was just one of those things that come and go, but when it was announced that schools might be moving to remote learning, I realized how serious it was. I had to stay on campus because if I left the county, I might not be allowed to come back. 

Being on campus right now feels very different since there are not many people here. It's very quiet. We've had to adopt strict social distancing practices so that we can keep everyone safe. I haven't been able to hang out with any of the 80 students that are still on campus because of the workload that I have and also just to stay safe. Fortunately, Dana Dining Hall is still open and we go there twice a day to get meals. The staff at Dana have been very good to us and I am very grateful for everything that do.

The closing of the fitness center and the athletic complex came at a tough time for me because I was in the last and most important phase of recovery for my knee injury. I have had to improvise and do my rehab in my room. It's been hard to do it without the gym and I'm still adjusting on how to make the best out of this situation. Fortunately we have the TeamBuildr app that we use during the offseason for workouts and we have been doing the workouts we usually do as a team but without weights. I also have been running on Sandy MacAllaster Field, which has been nice. 

Besides school and soccer, I have been trying to sharpen my singing skills, and I feel like I have made a lot of progress.

As for the team, I have been texting with a few teammates here and there. We are encouraging each other to stay positive during this tough time. As selfish as it is to say this, we are all worried about the 2020 season being canceled, but soccer is not the top priority right now. The most important thing is health and making sure that our families are safe. 

As for school, virtual learning has not been that hard for me to get used to. I have three final papers that I am working on, so that has been keeping me busy. All my professors have been very good with me in terms of making sure that class still feels as normal and comfortable as possible for everyone. I'm hoping to finish the year on a high note, and then see what comes after that.

When all this comes to an end, I hope we will start cherishing the people that we have around us and appreciate that life is precious and it can be taken away from us in the blink of an eye.

Marvin Sibanda '23 is a first-year on the men's soccer team. This piece is part of a series of stories by student-athletes about how St. Lawrence student-athletes saw their academic and athletic plans change rapidly as the spread of COVID-19 across the nation caused St. Lawrence to make the transition to remote learning instruction after spring break. If you are a St. Lawrence student-athlete interested in participating in this project, please contact Aaron Todd at atodd@stlawu.edu.