Spring 2020 blog contest: Deirdre Heavey (First-Place Winner)

I woke up on Friday, March 13, in sunny Barcelona, Spain, to a notification that the Spanish Prime Minister had declared a state of emergency. The country would be going into lockdown at midnight, meaning no one in Spain would be allowed to leave their homes for any nonessential reason.

That morning, my housemates and I sat around the table on our balcony as we debated whether or not we should book flights back to our home countries. We cried and we laughed as we questioned how we were going to leave the beautifully blissful city of Barcelona. For the last time, we sat around the table and enjoyed the presence of people who we probably would never see again despite living under the same roof for months.

Later that evening, my three best friends that I had met in Barcelona came over for dinner. We prepared dinner together, making use of the food I had stockpiled earlier in the week when I thought there was nothing that could make me leave Barcelona. We sat around the table on my balcony, listening to Frank Sinatra, passing around patatas bravas, and sharing our highs and lows of the past few months we shared together in Barcelona. My flight was booked for the following day. We watched Call Me By Your Name, because it was on Spanish Netflix, and all cried when it was time to say goodbye.

Around the table of my balcony in Barcelona on what became my last day in Spain, I shared moments of authenticity with those who had become my family in just a few short months. Each of us had come to Barcelona in search of something unique, and each would inevitably leave for the same unavoidable reason.

Just a month ago, my community was large and expanding each day. I was making new friends from around the world as I laughed and learned in kinship with international students. Today, my community often feels small and limited as I approach my fourth week of quarantine in my hometown of San Francisco, California.

Earlier today, I was hiking my favorite trail near my house, Mount Davidson. I was playing “No Woman” by Whitney out loud on my phone when someone passed me saying, “Hey! That’s a great song.” Then, I didn’t feel so alone.

As our world collectively grieves from COVID-19, I have found solace recalling my final moments in Spain. While I was upset to leave the beautiful people and places that became my home, I am comforted by the little moments I share with strangers amidst the madness. I am grounded in the positivity shared between strangers as well as the authenticity shared with loved ones. Let’s show up for one another during this time by reminiscing with friends about better days and never forgetting to manifest happiness for the future.


Author: Deirdre Heavey
Program: Exchange at the Universitat Abat Oliba CEU in Barcelona, Spain, Spring 2020 semester