A surprising amount of things are coalescing together this summer; COVID-19 numbers are on the decline, vaccine rollout is in full swing as more and more people get vaccinated by the day and the 17-year cicadas are coming out and screeching at the top of their lungs across the country. With the CDC announcing that if you are fully vaccinated then you don’t need to wear a mask(however local rules still apply for mask-wearing), Jackson Hicks, a student at the University of Texas in Austin, said it is amazing to look back and see how far everything has come to get to this point.

“I am excited about the future, but I think it’s a sort of cautious optimism,” Hicks said. “I know that as a society we possess the ability to screw this up horribly. With that said, I am choosing to hope for the future and be excited to hang out with friends and go to restaurants.”

Hicks has spent most of the pandemic taking a gap year from college given how bleak everything looked at his university in Texas. The vaccine being eligible for anyone who wants it has changed his perspective and given him hope.

The big thing that people should focus on is hope. Currently, Americans are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. However, the pandemic isn’t over yet.  The COVID-19 rates may be on the decline in the USA, but across the globe, it still rages on.

With that in mind, the future’s still bright as more and more people get vaccinated in the United States. America can lend more and more of its vaccine supply to other nations slowing down the virus on a global scale. The fact that a vaccine is an option, not only for Americans but for people across the globe is amazing especially in areas that need it like India. I remember during the early days of the pandemic where some experts were saying a vaccine for the coronavirus could take years to create. Thankfully, they were wrong in those early, grim predictions. The vaccine creation and distribution were fast, efficient and safe.

Eric Price Fisher II, a student of the University of Maryland, said he’s looking forward to the possibility of a  COVID-19-free world. 

 “I am hoping to travel more and definitely go back to Chicago if I can afford it. With everything opening up things are looking considerably brighter.” 

Before the pandemic hit, Fisher was looking to come out of his shell more and try to make more friends. He was forced into isolation by the lockdowns and the high COVID-19 numbers. Now everyone on his campus is vaccinated and his future for after college looks bright 

“I am graduating this semester, so that’s nice. Also, I have a job lined up after college as well so that’s exciting,” said Fisher. 

The pandemic has been a collective trauma that billions of people have had to endure. Although this traumatic experience isn’t over yet, people can see the finish line, and all of the pain and boredom wasn’t for nothing. Life is in the early stages of returning to what it used to be. If that isn’t something to be hopeful for I don’t know what is.