On Thursday, May 11, The Monitor met with five Jefferson High School seniors a week away from graduating: Simon Jablonski, Luke Jackson, Emma McCauley, Matthew Young and Sam Yager. The conversation reflected heavily on navigating through the pandemic and all the uncertainties and challenges the students faced freshman year and beyond. What did they learn from this, and how has it shaped them? Each experience was unique, including that of JHS science teacher Steve McCauley, who also chimed in. The conversation went many places, and included some outlandish, refreshingly honest answers.
The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
The Monitor: What was one of your favorite moments of your high school career?
Jablonski: Meeting my best friend, Will Dietz, in culinary class.
Jackson: Football was great this year. Probably beating Florence that first time was my favorite moment.
Emma McCauley: Being a part of sports has been really fun. I did volleyball, basketball and track. I enjoyed all of them.
Young: The highlight for me was Mr. [Matt] Bowman letting me play “Seven Nation Army” [by The White Stripes] at state basketball, even though he hates the song.
Yager: There are a lot of good ones, but I’d have to say causing some chaos. That’s the most fun you can have. There was the suit of armor I wore…that was fun, and the [playful] knife fights. [The suit of armor] protects you from stab wounds, but not being bludgeoned to death. Hammers still hurt. I found that out the hard way.
It’s been an interesting four years. Tell me what’s it been like for you to navigate the start of the pandemic to where we are now?
Jablonski: I transferred from Helena High halfway through my sophomore year, and it was difficult to transition while coming back from COVID, but I made it work through online classes and blocked scheduling
Jackson: It was kind of hard to deal with…the masks and everything, but we’ve gone away from that and it’s better now. It was definitely a crazy four years.
Yager: It was definitely difficult. When the second or third week of March hit and everything shut down. I woke up one day and it was just like the world had ended. I was like, “OK, what the heck happened?” I went to bed and suddenly everyone’s freaking out. We couldn’t go to school anymore. We had to go to school online. That sucked. I hated online [classes].
Emma McCauley: It was definitely harder, but we got used to it and adapted.
Young: I hated it, too. It didn’t seem real. Going to school over FaceTime? That was such a strange concept. For me it was hard to get the motivation, too, without a teacher in my face. In-person is way better.
Steve McCauley: The toughest part was probably on the families. What a lot of students needed – if they weren’t disciplined – was mom or dad there saying “You will get on the computer,”’ but they had to make a living. It wasn’t good, but we did the best we could.
How has the experience of getting through the pandemic changed you or shaped you?
Jablonski: Coming back from COVID I think we were all a little more sympathetic. We understand what people went through and have a trauma bond.
Jackson: I also saw things through a different perspective, whether it’s school or something outside of school. It opened my eyes a lot. It’s crazy the difference between when the pandemic happened to now. I feel like I take less things for granted. You never know what’s going to happen.
Yager: I definitely took some things for granted. The pandemic made you realize just how much you did have. Everyone was in a panic and things got scarce. Toilet paper shortages? That was so dumb.
Emma McCauley: I just think that the experience showed us that things can change and we know we can adapt to it.
Young: I realized how much I appreciate teachers, and how much they try.
What’s the biggest thing you’ve learned about yourself these last four years?
Jablonski: How I don’t like to learn, really. I don’t like doing work that doesn’t benefit my career path. I’m going to be a stock investor and a daily trader. [He starts at Helena College for finance and business in the fall]
Jackson: Freshman year I had different ideas of what I want to do, but that’s changed. I’m definitely leaning toward something blue-collar now: welding or plumbing or something like that.
Steve McCauley: Originally you were going to be a teacher?
Jackson: Science teacher, definitely (laughs)
Yager: I learned that I want to leave. I don’t want to be stuck somewhere forever. I want to travel to the Superstition Mountains in Arizona. I want to check out the Lost Dutchman’s Mine, as it’s known. There’s an old legend behind it involving a German who came to Arizona and claimed he found a load of gold in an ancient mine hidden within Superstition. According to legend, there’s also a great skeleton that lives within the mountains with a light where its heart should be. A good number of the old miners and trappers have said that they’ve seen this thing, and I’m like, “I want to go see this.” It’s supposedly friendly.
Emma McCauley: I really enjoyed being outside more and realized I like doing that stuff more. Getting a break from school and sports gave me an opportunity to take up other hobbies like fishing and hiking.
Young: One thing I learned is how much change I’m capable of and how much I can grow, especially musically. I was writing a lot of music during that time and my skill went up a little more. That’s about all I was doing. It was a weird time. I also went through a spell where I had to do something drastic. I cut my hair and bleached it. That was my reaction to the pandemic.
How has going through the pandemic freshman year impacted the class of 2023 as a whole? Has it united you? And, if so, what are some examples of this?
Jablonski: It’s all about that trauma bond. We can all relate to how crappy it was going through it and having to suffer. That goes for the teachers, too. I feel like we all became a bit more connected.
Jackson: I’d say the football team was more united. There was more of a team bond, for sure. Even our senior class. We started off with a normal year in high school and then went through all that. It’s been interesting to see how we all grew.
Yager: When the pandemic first started I immediately lost touch with pretty much everyone, so it was definitely weird. It felt like there was no one out there and I had no idea where the rest of [my classmates] went. I wondered what happened to them, so when we got back to school it was nice to be reunited.
Emma McCauley: After being away from everyone for that long everyone was ready to come back and be with their class. It definitely made us closer.
Young: Even though we have our different cliques and everything we’re all still bonded together. We can all agree this was dumb and our bond has strengthened through that.
Steve McCauley: It took a few years to recover from the initial shock. It was a scary time…I would say as a teacher I did notice some things academically, usually when I was chewing out an upper level class. I’d say “don’t you remember doing this?” One kid would raise his hand and say, “Mr. McCauley, we were home during COVID for that,” which means I taught them the content but I wasn’t really teaching them the content. Still, these kids persevered and if they wanted to catch up academically they did so. I feel like we’ve been normal for a couple years and back to business.
Young: I feel like we weren’t fully back until this year.
Were there any COVID protocols you’d like to see stick around?
Young: The one thing I liked about having to wear masks was it got us to go outside and walk. It’d be nice to keep this in place, even if it’s just a five-minute break. It gets tiring just sitting down all day.
Steve McCauley: Yeah, doing block scheduling and having that opportunity to walk united us a bit more, too. As teachers we got to hang out with the students in a more casual atmosphere and had some really cool conversations with some of the kids. I agree there’s a lot of value to these breaks. You guys sit too much.
Yager: It’s a very sedentary lifestyle. (laughs)
When you look back on this experience going through the pandemic, is there anything you’d consider a blessing?
Jablonski: I liked spending more time with my family. I feel like we’re all closer now.
Jackson: I agree with that. Also, for me, I enjoyed having more solitude and spending more time outdoors: skiing, hunting, fishing. They are all great ways to escape.
Yager: I didn’t get to see anyone for a really long time. I got to be so anti-social it was great. I did not have to deal with anyone or any of their problems for so long. It was blissful. Then I came back and realized I had to engage in society again.
Steve McCauley: I missed you, too, Sam.
Emma McCauley: I got to go to my cabin a lot more than I would have and do other stuff outside.
Young: When we got back I felt like there was a better understanding between teachers and students. It reminded you of what you have. You need that contact with people.
What are you looking forward to for next year?
Jablonski: I’m looking forward to new experiences, new friends and doing pretty much whatever I want.
Jackson: I’m kind of excited because I won’t have much going on besides work. I’m looking forward to going hunting and fishing more.
Yager: I’m excited because I’m not going back to school for a while. I don’t know what I want to do yet. I just know I want to explore.
Emma McCauley: I’m excited to enter into a new part of my life. I’m headed to Montana Tech [where she already earned a Certified Nursing Assistant license]. Right now I’m majoring in medicine but that definitely could change.
Young: I’m going to be an electrician. I’ll be joining a union to be an apprentice for a while on my way to my journeyman [electrician license]. I’m going to go for my masters. It’s a good way to make money. It will fuel the money I need to keep my dreams on the side. I love to write my own music that people enjoy listening to. I have a songwriter in me wanting to get out, but it’s difficult.
What are you going to miss the most about being here at Jefferson High?
Jablonski: Not much.
Jackson: I’ll miss the social aspect of being with my friends, and I’ll miss sports, as well as some of the classes. Welding was probably my favorite, and I could see pursuing that more in the future.
Yager: I am definitely going to miss some of the people here. Watching you guys has honestly been its own little social experiment. It’s been amusing to watch as you interact with each other and wonder how that works. Absolutely strange people. I’m definitely going to miss Matt [Young]. I can’t say I know Emma [McCauley] well enough to say I’ll truly miss her but I definitely think I will. Luke [Jackson], yeah, I’ll miss him, too. And Simon [Jablonski], I’ll miss him, too.
Young: I’ll miss you, too, Sam.
Emma McCauley: I’ll miss all my friends. I’ll also miss not having too much responsibility. It’s been a lot of fun.
Are you hopeful or not hopeful about where the world is going, where the nation is going, why or why not?
Jablonski: I’m moving to Canada (laughs) I don’t want to be here anymore. I’m just tired of dumb people in dumb positions.
Jackson: With all of the garbage going on I don’t have any hope at all. Personally, though, I feel hopeful. Things might be crazy around the country and the world, but I live in Montana, and it’s still pretty great. I can find peace here with all the stuff that’s going on.
Yager: I’m hopeful. History moves in cycles. This has all played out before.
Maybe not this exact way but it’s pretty much the same thing over and over again: Bad economy, bad leaders, a plague. Sooner or later either we’re going to be invaded by someone (probably not but there’s 50% chance) Then the economy is going to kill us all. That’s probably what’s going to destabilize us the most – our own stupidity. That’s basically what brought down Rome. Empires rise and fall all the time. You’ve just got to sit back and watch. Our empire is hitting its 250-year limit quickly. It’s gonna have to change. The system is flawed. You’ve gotta have some change.
Emma McCauley: Like Luke [Jackson] said, although it’s kinda crazy around the world we are lucky to still live in Montana. It doesn’t compare to other places, but, yeah, it’s definitely not looking good.
Young: You’ve always got to have to hope, or what’s all this for? Whatever you do you’ve got to stay in your own bubble of hope, even if everything is crumbling down around you. Just try to find the beauty in chaos.
Yager: When you watch the world burn down you’ve just got to look at the glow of the fire and say, “That’s amazing.”
