What We Can Do

We were doing a deep scrub of the kitchen and dining room when I took a soapy cloth to a couple of candle sticks that had been sitting on our sideboard for literally years. The silver plate polished nicely, yielding to my elbow grease. We should use these more, I thought as I replaced them, thinking then of Eleanor Roosevelt's words, It's better to light a candle than curse the darkness.

And isn't that what many of us have been doing? Long walks, a sparkling clean house, and apple pie-- that's what the eighth day of this crisis brought us. And who knows what tomorrow will be like, but tonight? There will be candlelight.

Earning their Kibble

I was giggling at my cat Tibby swatting and chasing her catnip mouse this morning when I logged in to check on my students' writing. I had asked them to share something that made them laugh this week, and I was eager to see what they posting. The mouse skidded over my socks with the cat in pursuit, but the hardwood floor was too slippery and Tibby overshot her quarry. She recovered with a nimble somersault and slapped the mouse into the living room where the chase continued.

I was still chuckling as I began to scroll through the moments of joy the kids had found in a week of uncertainty.

What do you know? Most of them? Were laughing at their crazy pets, too.

Quote of the Day

My approach to distance learning has been to maintain the daily announcement that I provide through our learning management system, and so students have worked through the agenda as usual, just at home and with no direct instruction. As part of the announcement, we always have a quote of the day, and this week has been no different in that respect either, except that I have asked the kids to respond to the QotD in writing and to post their thoughts on the class discussion board.

Here's what we've written about this week:

Monday: “She refused to be bored, chiefly because she wasn't boring.”~Zelda Fitzgerald 

Tuesday: “I find the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have." ~Thomas Jefferson 

Wednesday: “Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out." ~John Wooden 

Thursday: "A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty." ~Winston Churchill

I've tried to choose aphorisms that give them the opportunity to process what's going on through a lens of optimism, but today, when I asked which one they were in response to Churchill's words, most identified as pessimists.

I was thinking about their responses as I took a walk this afternoon, and I wondered how I could lighten the mood a bit for tomorrow. I decided to use a quotation from Ben Franklin: "Trouble knocked at the door, but, hearing laughter, hurried away." and ask the students to share something that made them laugh this week.

I'm looking forward to reading what they write.

Just Doing Their Jobs

There was shouting outside our front door this morning and a heavy odor of mulch choked the air in our complex all day today. The ringing throb of a jackhammer on concrete pounded outside our windows all morning, too. I guess I'm spoiled-- usually I go to work and when I get home, all the maintenance and repair has magically been done. I never thought about the noise and disruption that accompanies such jobs.

Fortunately, the cement mixer idling and coughing in the parking lot at lunch time was a bit quieter, and the sidewalk replacement was all done by the time I got back from a short run.

I can't complain about any of it. It's good to know that some commerce goes on uninterrupted by closures, quarantines, and social distancing.

With My Own Eyes

It seemed like such a good idea. I read a piece in the NYTimes by a doctor who practiced 18 months of social distance back in 2003 in order to keep her premature babies as healthy as possible. She made it all seem so doable, especially the grocery shopping. She went late at night when the stores were nearly empty.

I knew yesterday would be a madhouse anywhere, but I thought that by early this morning some stores would be less crowded and restocked after a crazy weekend and the first Monday of widespread social distance. And so we set the alarm and armed with disinfectant wet wipes and hand sanitizer headed off optimistically at 6:30 AM for the nearest Wegmans. It almost seemed fun, like a silly lark.

Arriving 25 minutes later, we were heartened to see customers pushing carts with toilet paper to the cars. "It kind of makes me want to run," Heidi said, and we laughed as we wiped down our grocery cart and swept through the automatic doors. Our smiles turned to gasps when we turned the corner into the produce department. The giant wooden display bins were bare of nearly all the fresh fruit and vegetables.

Heidi headed to household while I turned to the bakery. A few loaves of warm bread were on a metal rack, along with some soda bread and Irish butter. The meat cases were practically empty, there was very little milk and no eggs, and the toilet paper was gone. Meanwhile the line to checkout stretched to the back of the store. Over the store's audio system Crowded House sang Hey la, hey la, don't dream it's over as we pushed our cart down aisle after empty aisle.

So this is what dystopia is like.

Dispatches from Home

Day 1 of distance learning for our students is, pardon the pun, in the books. Before school was canceled, my students were participating in a month long Slice of Life challenge which requires them to post a daily anecdote or other reflection on a personal experience, and so my plan was for them to continue that while we are away. I thought it would be a good way for us to stay connected as a learning community, as well as a chance for kids to put their thoughts and feelings into writing during this unprecedented time. And they sure have taken advantage of that opportunity!

On Saturday and Sunday, some of those who wrote complained of how bored they already were and wondered how they would possibly make it through a "30 day weekend," while others expressed annoyance that they would have to do school work over their "break". Today, though, the first week away from school commenced with several students reporting on the routines that their parents were establishing for them at home:

So my mom has made this kind of school with this whole schedule including 2 PE periods, a total of three hours of class work, half an hour of chores, and an hour of family time. So basically I was woken up at 7:30, I took a shower, got dressed and had breakfast, and then from 8:00 to 9:30 is class work time. After this I have an hour of first PE and then a snack break. So this is going to be an exhausting couple of days until I get used to this. And also I have to write a five page essay for my dad. 

Ugh today my mom is forcing me to make today a normal school day! And I hate the idea but my mom still wants me to do because she’s the boss of me

So I think that my parents are going crazy over this whole not going to school and everything is canceled thing. Especially my mom. Since dance was canceled she is making me do conditioning classes and online dance classes. Also, she is giving me so many chores. I have to fold the laundry and water the grass. She says that watering the grass is good for me to get some time outside, but I can go outside on my own without watering the grass. So, I think she is just using me for manual labor. Plus, I have to lookup and tell her about the census. And not just what it is but how long we have had it, who made it, etc. It’s kind of overwhelming. Now, I have to go to water the grass for my “outside time” and if I don’t I will probably get yelled at so bye! 

So today my dad wants to make today like a school day but i keep telling him that we have things on canvas and we also got packets. But then he said that instead of him being teaching math and stuff like that he’s going to teach PE fun.
So in "PE" today were going to be learning core exercises that going to be interesting. Oh and my mom she is on me like a tick to get my work done. And my brother he is going to get so stressed out i already know. So in conclusion my day and most days for about a month are going to be crazy. 

Hi guys, I’m so exhausted from my workout today. My mom makes me do a 30 minute work out which is super tiring. I had to do 50 push-ups and 50 curl ups. And 10 or something pull-ups. I hate having no school. There’s nothing to do but there’s lots to do. It’s weird. 

Last night my mom went over our schedule for the next day. She said school wouldn’t be any different than home. “Are you sure about that mom?!

Nice work, parents! Looking forward to Day 2!

Looking Backward

I spent a part of my day today working on the family tree my mother started on Ancestry.com. For those of you who are not familiar, the site adds little green leaves next to the name of family members to show that there is a hint, some as yet unlinked source that may provide information about that person. For me, these hints can be rabbit holes leading to facsimiles of hand-written census rolls, marriage or death certificates, or actual photos of gravesites and memorials. (Today I even found yearbook pictures of my sister and sister-in-law!)

I was lost in the past for at least 2 hours, exploring the lives of sailors, shoemakers, and inn keepers I never knew, but the fact that they were people that people I loved loved made everything seem quite relevant. And in these uncertain times, knowing how it all turned out was a comfort in itself.