As we all do our part in staying home to “flatten the curve” and stop the spread of coronavirus, I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say that we have a lot of newfound extra time on our hands.

During my own free time, I’ve been listening to a lot of music. These countless hours of reflection have led me to one conclusion: there are a lot of songs out there that were, in fact, secretly written about Penn State students missing Penn State while they’re social distancing at home. Here are my top nine in no particular order:

9. Yesterday – The Beatles

Yesterday
All my troubles seemed so far away
Now it looks as though they’re here to stay
Oh, I believe in yesterday

This song is a lament for the past and Penn State students everywhere are reminiscing on their last memories at school. Looking back on it, we had so much that we took for granted when we were allowed to visit restaurants and bars and stand closer than six feet to our friends.

8. Better Together – Jack Johnson

Love is the answer, at least for most of the questions in my heart
Why are we here? And where do we go?
And how come it’s so hard?
It’s not always easy and
Sometimes life can be deceiving
I’ll tell you one thing, it’s always better when we’re together

It’s an understatement to say that this is a confusing time for everyone, and that’s without factoring in the transition to remote classes. It’s definitely making us miss Penn State even more than we usually do when we’re away from campus.

7. I Believe – The Jonas Brothers

‘Cause you show me something I can’t live without
I believe, I believe, I believe
When you hold me, it’s like Heaven coming down
I believe, I believe, I believe

Now that we’re all scattered around the world and finishing the rest of this semester at Zoom University, I’m sure we’re all starting to realize how good we’ll have it when we’re able to return to State College in the fall (as long as social distancing has ended). In-person classes will for sure hit different, and at least for the first few weeks, those morning trudges up Shortlidge won’t be as grueling.

6. I Don’t Wanna Miss A Thing – Aerosmith

Don’t want to close my eyes
I don’t want to fall asleep
‘Cause I’d miss you, babe
And I don’t want to miss a thing

‘Cause even when I dream of you
The sweetest dream will never do
I’d still miss you, babe
And I don’t want to miss a thing

Now that we are all officially in a long distance relationship with Penn State, we need to cling on to the memories that we have from our time on campus a little harder until we’re all able to be together again. However, even the best memories, however blurry, can never compare to the real thing.

5. Back To December – Taylor Swift

It turns out freedom ain’t nothing but missing you
Wishing I’d realized what I had when you were mine

The queen of break-up songs was speaking the truth when she wrote this middle school anthem, and while we initially thought it was about Taylor Lautner (Team Jacob all the way), it’s now become clear that the Pennsylvania native had Penn State students in mind. I’m sure we all were ready for a break from the stresses of classes when we left campus for spring break, but none of us were prepared to say goodbye for the rest of the rest of the semester, or in the case of the Class of 2020, for the last time as students.

4. Kiss Me Thru The Phone – Soulja Boy

Baby you know that I miss you
I wanna get with you tonight but I cannot baby girl
And that’s the issue, girl you know I miss you
I just wanna kiss you
But I can’t right now
So baby kiss me thru the phone (kiss me thru the phone)
I’ll see you later on
Kiss me thru the phone (kiss me thru the phone)
See you when I get home

Maybe students aren’t itching to kiss Old Main, but we’re certainly all missing our university and can’t wait to finally come home. Zoom calls with our friends and virtual Happy Hours with our favorite bars may help during this time of uncertainty, but it’s only a fraction as good as the real thing.

3. I Miss You – Blink-182

Don’t waste your time on me
You’re already the voice inside my head (I miss you, I miss you)
Don’t waste your time on me
You’re already the voice inside my head (I miss you, I miss you)

I hope I’m not alone when I say that the phrase, “Are you ready for Penn State football?!” will be stuck on repeat inside my head until our first game day next season, since that’s pretty much all we have to look forward to at this point. This Blink-182 classic speaks to the souls of Penn Staters everywhere as we dutifully log on to Zoom every morning.

2. Baby Come Back – Player

Baby come back, any kind of fool could see
There was something in everything about you
Baby come back, you can blame it all on me
I was wrong, and I just can’t live without you

We thought we could handle a few weeks away from campus for a short remote period, but students’ hearts broke when we were given the news that we would not be returning for the remainder of the spring. As we all move through the stages of grief, this banger certainly speaks to the bargaining stage.

1. Hey There Delilah – Plain White T’s

Hey there, Delilah
What’s it like in New York City?
I’m a thousand miles away
But, girl, tonight you look so pretty
Yes, you do
Times Square can’t shine as bright as you
I swear, it’s true

This entire song is pretty much an anthem to Penn State students, but these lyrics in particular stood out to me. Even though we can’t physically be in State College right now, we all know how beautiful our campus and downtown are at this time of year. The flowers on Old Main Lawn are beginning to bloom, the leaves are returning to the trees, and the harsh tundra-like conditions are gone for another year.

It sure does make you miss it, huh?