The sky was blue, and the sun was shining. The feeling of ease and content unfortunately felt too good to be true, as by the end of the week we'd find out that the rest of the semester would be remote. However, as colleges around us were closing for the rest of the semester, these two glorious Spring days made it a little easier to not stress about the havoc going on around us.
On the Tuesday before we left campus for the rest of the term, my friend and I drove to Holyoke, which is a city south of Amherst. Ironically, we had to go to Holyoke because I had an interview for a school I applied to transfer to. However, that single day was one of the best days of my freshman year. Cruising down the highway with the sun flooding through the dashboard and nourishing our faces with valuable vitamin D felt revitalizing. Seeing the world that existed beyond our large campus was refreshing.
After my interview, we made our way back up to UMass but took a detour to Hampshire College. Hampshire College is a small liberal arts college in Amherst best known for its alternative methods of teaching. The school is located at a top of a small hill, so it can't be seen unless one actually drives into the campus. Thus, we turned into the windy road leading to the actual campus and to our awe were met with colorful huts of different sizes, which oddly reminded me of Scandinavian prison. As we drove further in, we discovered what we assumed was the main academic area where there were a few brick buildings and a PVTA bus picking up the two people waiting at the bus stop. Even deeper into the campus were some buildings that looked like they were built using equal parts brick and aluminum, probably additional student housing. It was really like no other campus I had seen before. As I now look at the campus map, there were definitely a few major areas we missed. However, just from our brief visit, we were already drawn in by the charmingly quirkiness of this small liberal arts college located near our big research university.
A couple days later, the weather decided to treat us again. We could finally say goodbye to our down jackets, which in Amherst, are almost worn all year. The library was deserted, as students were studying outside. After our last class of the day, my friend and I picnicked under the vibrant sun in the courtyard behind the science building. I ate some fruit from the dining hall and my friend snuck out a tuna sandwich. Just laying on the ground with the sun blinding our eyes and the warmth enveloping us was serene.
Even though those two sunny days weren't anything out of the ordinary (well maybe driving around Hampshire College was a bit extreme), what made them memorable was that they were our last sense of normalcy. This is because two days later, right before leaving for spring break, we'd be frantically packing up our dorms trying to figure out what to bring home and what to leave, as the future was uncertain.
Those two days felt like a teaser for what the rest of the spring semester could have been like. Every time I look through my camera roll on my phone, whenever I come across the handful of photos from those couple of days, my heart melts as I begin to imagine what it would've felt like studying for finals outdoors and going hiking in Amherst. Sadness also rushes through me, as I feel slightly robbed. The teaser felt mean. It allowed us to experience what we could have had. However, at the same time, a smile always breaks out on my face. It makes me happy to know we at least ended our on campus portion of the term bathing in the sun while studying for classes and munching on tuna sandwiches. Therefore, why dwell on what we could have had when we can be content about the positive moments we actually did have.
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