I wouldn’t change a thing. Even though COVID-19 drastically changed my plans and life, I became a graduate of the class of 2020.  Looking back, I remember stressing about everything that was happening: packing up ...

Coronavirus—a word that you, like most Americans, are probably tired of reading about. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected almost every aspect of our daily lives, from changing the way we work and attend school, to shuttin...

You’ve seen the news reports, read the research, and listened to the experts. You know that wearing a face mask in public is important to help stop the spread of COVID-19. But someone else in your household has come to th...

Enduring the COVID-19 pandemic has left many plagued with anxiety, loss, confusion, and frustration. Many are out of work, losing family members, struggling to find child care as schools are closed, and mentally worn out ...

Just today, we had 185 new cases of COVID-19, but overall the numbers seem to be declining. Even though businesses are reopening, it’s scary. No one wants to be that first person to go to the Olive Garden. Nobody wants to...

We are living in unpredictable times. And lately, we have learned a harsh fact: life can change overnight. While there's no arguing that the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed our society into something we never imagine...

I like to think I know myself. But living through a pandemic has a way of forcing yourself to look inward, to examine the things I thought I knew. Maybe I don’t really know anything about myself. The days of COVID-19 have...

I grabbed my wife’s arm. I have one last packet of flour left.   “What is it, honey?” she said lovingly.  “Let’s make bread.”  Her loving look faded ever so slightly. But we needed food. “T...

The spread of COVID-19 is more than a health crisis. It has heightened some of humanity's less desirable traits as well, including fear, selfishness, and exclusion. But it didn’t just bring out the worst part of ourselves...

Did you know that 28% of America’s population are immigrants or children of immigrants? I am one of them. My dad comes from Iran and is a United States citizen. During the COVID-19 self-isolation, time has taken on a stra...

I was 14 when I smoked my first cigarette. I thought it would better my relationship with my father, that somehow smoking would make him see me. SMH. It’s amazing (and sad) what we do to get attention from our parents. 30...

The travel bans during the COVID-19 pandemic apply to flights and trains, so I’ve decided to do a little traveling around my own home instead. Join me on a trip as we travel to the favorite rooms in my house. We’ll visit ...

At the start of the year, nobody would have guessed that commencement would be held over video streaming. Even so, that doesn’t mean that graduation lacked a sense of unity. Due to the worldwide pandemic, this year’s coll...

At the initial stage of the COVID-19 pandemic, I and most of my family thought “hey, it’s just going to be a few weeks of Netflix and chill and some leisure time to relax.” And that was what the experience was for a while...

The pandemic posed a unique challenge to us in the developing world. Even though there is a claim that the developed world was not prepared to handle the pandemic, the developing world doesn’t even have a functioning heal...

There’s a great SNL sketch that clarifies what a trip to Italy can and cannot do for you. Adam Sandler, playing the owner of an Italian tour company, reminds potential customers to maintain realistic expectations. You can...

2020 was supposed to be a big year. Major global inventions were on the horizon, the UAE was planning the World’s largest EXPO, China was moving towards digital currency, and a massive technological uplift across the worl...

Now is not the right time...I’m too busy...I don’t have what it takes...I want to wait until… Until what? Those excuses don’t exist anymore. I was one of the first people to lose my job during the lockdown as I worked as ...

The life of a glassblower means constant contact. When you’re this type of artist, you're permanently stuck in an inescapable pool of germs. But surprisingly, I’m alright with it.   Here’s a good analogy. Bei...

 If someone had asked me only a few months ago about my 2020 plans, I would have recounted numerous goals and dreams. I remember clearly gathering around the Christmas tree, celebrating the New Year with my friends a...

There is a scar on my left wrist. It’s the trail of a blade. It’s barely noticeable now, but a vivid time capsule of that evening well before COVID-19 began.  I was locked in the bathroom. In my right hand was a f...

COVID-19 is something we never expected. It has proved to be an adversary, leaving a trail of illness and death and challenging even the world’s best health care systems. None of us were prepared to face the realities of ...