Chapter Fourteen: Written by Steven Senko

Name: Steven Senko
Age: 27
Ethnicity: Korean-American
Occupation: Marketing Director
Location: Princeton, NJ

2020 has been a year filled with challenges but overall it was mostly positive. With the epidemic of the coronavirus that took place earlier this year it has forced me to limit myself in ways that I was not used too. Pre-covid I was always out with friends, attending cool events and going on many trips but this year sadly that wasn’t the case for the most part. This year however allowed me to take care of so many personal projects that I wouldn’t have gotten done if it wasn’t for being in quarantine for so long earlier this year. During quarantine I however was able to connect with so many amazing people who come from a similar background as me being an Asian adoptee. Attending a lot of “meetups” via Zoom was probably one of the best things to ever come out of 2020 for me. It’s always nice to meet so many people who can relate to you on a personal level that not many people could and this has allowed me to build so many lasting friendships. Even though we may not be able to freely travel as we once were able too I hope that someday in the near future we can do so again. The only traveling I mainly did this year was taking small trips to go hiking and exploring in the tri-state area and learning to appreciate nature more. That to me was very valuable and an incredible experience. It is always nice to disconnect from life for that brief moment and take in what the world has to offer outdoors. The challenges of the virus has also impacted my work performance since my job requires me to always being out at multiple places but I have to always be careful where I go and who I interact with and making sure I keep as healthy and safe as I can while out in the community. I treated this as a positive thing since I had to adapt to the ever constant changes in the community but made me an even more efficient worker. As long as people keep respecting others health and safety in check, we will all be able to make it through this epidemic together and hopefully have a normal life.