“Make no mistake. My wonderful students have not been social distancing. They haven’t been wearing masks. I’ve seen their social media posts all summer, living life as though we aren’t in the heat of a global pandemic. I’ve worked hard to protect myself and others for 6 months. Soon, I’ll be in a classroom with no windows and more teenagers than is safe.”
‘Driving today, I saw waves of middle and high school athletes running in very close clusters. No masks. Lots of panting, big inhales and exhales.’: Teacher pens open letter amid school reopenings, ‘I’m risking everything I’ve worked my entire life for’
‘Welcome to Kindergarten! Look at my cool face shield!!! Maybe you’ll get an astronaut helmet too! Let’s learn a hand-washing song! Are you ready?’: Teacher urges ‘put trust in the gap’
“I wish we could take you through every single way we are preparing to protect your child, but we simply don’t have enough time. Put trust in the gap and give your child’s teacher some grace.”
‘We drove past a homeless man. ‘If you aren’t going to give him money, mom, we have to make eye contact.’: Mom urges ‘in a world without human contact, smile with your whole damn face’
“I usually give money. But today, I didn’t. I didn’t know where my purse was. Cars were cutting in and out of traffic. I was stressed and quickly snapped at my kids to be quiet so I could focus on driving. My daughter’s response surprised me.”
‘I decided to homeschool. And I sort of want to throw up, honestly.’: Mom of 6 urges ‘this is a great challenge, but I’m going to make the best of it’
“This decision truly ripped my heart out. I love our school district and our teachers so much. Taking five kids out of their funding directly affects them. But it’s really the only option we can do right now.”
‘I drove 11 hours with my babies. I just needed to feel my ‘home.’ I wanted to laugh together like the world isn’t burning.’: Mom talks about finding the positive during a pandemic
“I needed to taste my mama’s pancakes. I just needed to feel my ‘home,’ and not through the blue light of a screen. I didn’t realize what a release it would be to just pull up in a familiar driveway, knock on a door, and have it open wide.”
‘I started to cry. You should never have to sit that far away from your friends.’: Mom talks social distancing and kids, ‘You don’t have to be emotionally distant’
“It’s just a couple kids sharing a table. There’s nothing I can do. But you should never have to sit that far away from your friends. I know it’s smart. I know it’s necessary. Then I stopped and I started to cry.”
‘If you feel like you are failing at life right now, then Friend, you are in good company.’: Woman urges ‘there is no ceiling to this trench, we WILL get out’
“My children are playing way too many video games. My husband and I are constantly butting heads. I miss seeing faces without masks, miss asking my babies how their day was at school. I miss not having to stand in a line. AND WHY DO I HAVE SUCH A HARD TIME FOLLOWING THOSE DANG ARROWS?!”
‘On the days the world feels a little too scary and a little less safe, I will always be there to wipe away the tears.’: Mom comforts daughter though ‘scary times’
“As your mom, I wanted to tell you that everything would be okay. That the world as you knew it would return to normal soon. But the truth is, it probably won’t. I held you as the first teardrop formed in the corner of your eyes. And, in a blink, the flood gates were unleashed.”
‘My kids missed two consecutive Zoom meetings. My daughter started getting snarky, and my son who is not a crier was crying.’: Mom says ‘we will not just survive this, we will endure with grace’
“My middle child began to isolate. School assignments I would classify as easy we’d been blowing through for weeks were suddenly overwhelming each day, and I couldn’t even articulate why. Their mental health was declining.”
‘This isn’t the introduction to motherhood you expected. Even though I have not been able to see you, I see you.’: Woman urges ‘you are loved, you are enough’ to new moms during pandemic
“It wasn’t meant to be this way. But Mama, please remember…although this world is upside down, you are the world to them. What I would give to sit in solace with you.”
