MONDAY, MARCH 3O, 2020
As the pandemic ensued, protocols and advisories evolved from day to day, and change seemed the reoccurring theme. Any sign of normalcy and stability would be fleeting.
I advised Facebook friends and family: “Let’s remember, we are facing a pandemic, so parents are not really homeschooling, and students are not receiving true online education, we are all doing the best we can to adjust to a crisis, so what we have here is a Band-Aid, a quick fix. Nothing is ideal under these circumstances, for any parent, student, or educator, so please do not judge yourself or others!”
Still, masked my face with a smile and persisted.
TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2020
The first week of remote instruction, I wore my best pajamas and went through the motions establishing online protocols and delivering lessons from an uncomfortable chair, but this week I determined that I would dress up in my cutest spring dress and nicest matching cardigan as I worked from my living room and then the fresh outdoors, and I even took advice from my alma mater, Boston University, and learned how to set up an ergonomically friendly home office. Sadly, by the end of the day, I returned to my makeshift office in the dining room, and almost lost all hope when, late at night, I learned I would lose a week of spring break and only have a four-day weekend to celebrate Holy Thursday and Good Friday.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1, 2020
Quoting the end of Animal Farm by George Orwell, Mr. Dev aptly responded to my Facebook post about the UFT’s support of the State and City mandate to revoke the last week of our spring break in order to keep schools open: “No question, now, what had happened to the faces of the pigs. The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”
THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 2020
Now, more than ever, we feel the sting of inequity: Some of us are more fortunate than others and have the resources necessary to practice social distancing, to engage in remote learning, and to sustain our needs and that of a family, but others struggle for the basic essentials, luxuries that should not be taken for granted.
FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2020
Initially, I understood the mandate to keep schools open to engage and focus students on social distancing, to provide grab and go meals for those who need them, and to continue to offer child care services to first responders and essential workers. I know, we are not on the frontlines, we should be grateful we have jobs and can work from home, but everyone needs a break, even if only for a four-day weekend.
SATURDAY, APRIL 4, 2020
Trying to maintain an optimistic outlook, I draw on the wise words of J. K. Rowling’s character, Albus Dumbledore, in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: “Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.”
Eduspiration 