August 31, 2020

When one thinks of the key features of a home, several things may come to mind: the dinning room table, the living room, the front door. But there are some items that few would consider. Take, for instance, the staircase. It is a simple feature, connecting one floor of the home to another. In my home, the staircase is no exception. It connects the bedrooms, full bathrooms, and impromptu home office to the living and eating areas. Before the lock down, I and everyone else in the house used the staircase frequently. Ironically, once we spent the vast majority of our time at home, we used the stairs less frequently, settling down with whatever we were doing until it was time to move on to the next thing. I spent several days cooped up in my room and several more playing board games and watching TV with the family. While it may not be glorious, the home would not be the same without a staircase. #journeytonku2020 #humansofgreatercincinnati

August 31, 2020

This is the view from my room. I have been awoken each morning by the touch of the sun. Sitting in my room and watch the sky in the morning, I feel peaceful. I often spend time with nature to release my soul, especially in the time I have to lock myself in the room-the first days Covid hit this area. The sky change its appearances everyday. Someday it is coated the fainted blue, the other days it has the gray on it. But after all, there will be light of the sun and the moon. This light has been guiding me and opening up a brighter future for me. By all means, this is how I view my life! When I in my home country looking through the window, I also see the light. More than that, i see life! I want to experience life more and I may get bored of the repeating scenes. It is one the motivation lead me to NKU: I want to explore life around this world. Although Covid-19 hit the world hard, there will be light after all and I will follow it! #humansofgreatercincinnati #journeytonku2020

August 31, 2020

The past couple of months have been a challenge, to say the least. We as a community have gone through things that I would've considered pretty much impossible 12 months ago. A couple weeks after quarantine started everything seemed to clump together, days became weeks, weeks became months. It has been the same ole routine since mid March. For a while I was pretty bummed out— bummed being a combination of sad, mad, and all the other basic negative human emotions. But as August closed in I started becoming really excited. Coming to NKU is something I have looked forward to for a while now, and as the days were drawing near it was also very nerve racking. It was just a mix of excitement and anticipation and anxiety, expecting some announcement cancelling all on campus classes. It was really tough, and now that it is here it is kind of unbelievable and surreal that I actually made it to campus. As I look back on this summer one big thing that sticks out and that is no matter how I was feeling that day, I went to bed always thinking about tomorrow. What was the next day going to hold. Tomorrow, a mystical land where 99% of all human productivity, motivation, and achievements are stored. #journeytonku2020 #humansofgreatercincinnati

August 20, 2020

The summer of 2020 was unexpected. Graduating in the middle of it all was just icing on the cake. I have been room-bound and have come to appreciate my room all the more. My small library being a welcome distraction. My journey to NKU has been at the forefront of my mind. The stresses of taking the next step, the next big step in my life being ever-present. However, it has not bothered me as much as it once would have. The time given to me by the pandemic has allowed moments of self-discovery - like discovering a new religion. College is going to be a challenge and one I look forward to. A door in my life is being opened and, even if it is not how I pictured it happening, I am ready to step through it and see what is on the other side. #humansofgreatercincinatti #journeytonku2020 #beanorse #selfdiscovery

August 20, 2020

Ever since the summer of freshman year I have been working here at Lake Waynoka as a lifeguard. This summer has been a bit different. No other year have I worked this much. Due to COVID-19 we were unable to train new guards. The few returning guards have had to pick up the slack so this has been were I’ve spent most my summer. I also think this picture is very fitting (though it wasn’t my original plan but when I saw this beautiful rainbow I knew I had to use that as my picture) in many cultures rainbows are a symbol of change and new beginnings and I think that we can all agree that 2020 has brought on quit a bit of change. #journeytonku2020 #humansofgreatercincinnati

August 20, 2020

I am a Nigerian American living in Louisville, Kentucky. This has been my home for the last 18 years. In this home I’ve been through many ups and downs. I’ve been through three surgeries and I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease. When I look back on the things that have happened to me I see myself as a testimony. It is truly because of God that I am able to be where I am at today and begin something new for myself at NKU. For the past 5 months this home has been everything to me. I started painting as my new hobby and I loved every last minute. When I painted I felt like I was in a whole new world, one where nobody judged anyone. Now for the first time in 18 years, I am going to be away from my home (longer than 3 weeks) and beginning a new journey in life. #journeytonku2020 #humansofgreatercincinnati

August 19, 2020

The city I grew up in, is a city I never thought I’d leave. This monument represents the heart of Indiana and means much and it still gave me hope throughout this pandemic. While growing up I always wanted to explore more and experience new things. I had high hopes for myself and believed that I would do great things and give back to my community. Now with being in a pandemic many of my plans have changed. Even though activity in Indianapolis was low, me and my friends still managed to make the best of it. It became our goal to make the summer one to remember before we all left for college. Even though I’m two hours away from home, the memories that I’ve had over the last 18 years will always stay with me. #journeytonku2020 #humansofgreatercincinnati

August 16, 2020

Summer is usually a time to relax, travel, and enjoy family. Unfortunately, that is the complete opposite of what happened this summer. I returned from taking a group of amazing students on one of the best alternative spring break experiences to jumping onto an unbelievable roller coaster of the unknown. This summer I have dealt with four weeks of sickness, loss of a first cousin to Covid-19, passing of my last grandparent, cancellation of vacations, travel plans, and racial tension across the nation, and on top of all this, attempting to write a dissertation to complete my degree requirements. As a person who enjoys nature, my patio at night became my one place of peace and relaxation. It allowed me to have a little sense of normalcy amongst the chaos. #journeybacktonku2020 #humansofgreatercincinnati

August 16, 2020

This was my quarantine desk my senior year. After Covid started making an impact and school was switched to online (NTI) this was where I completed all of my assignments, and attended my zoom meetings. I even did different senior activities like baccalaureate and graduation on my computer. You can see that there are other devices, because my siblings would also be doing there work at the same time. I consistently helped my siblings with their work. They both had a hard time learning from home. Even if I didn’t have a meeting in the morning I would have to wake up and make sure my siblings were on theirs. The days seemed long not being able to see friends and family. However, I am grateful that I could help my siblings and spend more time with them as well as graduate and continue my education at NKU. #journeytonku2020 #humansofgreatercincinnati

August 16, 2020

This picture is my city and shows how I spend most of my time. Ever since March my life has pretty much gone downhill so this summer I’ve just been driving going everywhere all the time. Driving at night is one of my favorite things to do because there aren’t as many people on the roads and it’s just easier to vibe and chill to my music. My mind has been all over the place leading up to my move into NKU I was scared but excited and still nervous all at the same and I definitely cried more than once but I made it and now I’m ready to start my new life at nku. #journeytonku2020 #humansofgreatercincinnati