As we approach August the heat here in NC has been pretty relentless. You open the front door and it's like walking into an oven. Put a fork in me I am done. Normally we are accustomed to this heat...... I might say I even like it? I definetly prefer to be HOT vs. COLD, hence our move from upstate NY over 14 years ago.
This heat is different..... it's like eating an ice cream cone (everyday life) while it melts at warp speed and somene tries throwing on rainbow sprinkles (new "virtual" school year), and then to add insult to injury, some ass clown tries putting a cherry on top (a pandemic). When it's all over you are left standing with a huge mess. Your white shorts will never be the same, your out of wipes to clean your hands and face because, well.... NO ONE CAN FIND THEM ANYWHERE. The napkins they gave you are useless at wiping anything up.... and you worry if this will trigger your dairy intolerance, as you already imagine your sleepless night curled up in the fetal position in bed wondering when the civil war in your intestines will end.
I mean. WOW.
What can you do? Laugh. It's what we do. We wake up everyday, do our best to survive and enjoy the moments and then sit down at dinner and laugh at ourselves and joke about how to survive the next day. Survive is ALL we have to do right now.
To be fair, most days are pretty good. We have figured it out. The new school year reminded us how wonderful summer break really was. We miss it but we try and look forward, but the heat has presented a new challenge. We were spedning so much time outside doing outdoor "stuff" to break up our days, and now? We can't spend more than 10 minutes outside before you will either pass out or die in a pool of your own sweat.
The kids started school last week. New school year! We don't love virtual school but we are giving it 100%. We look forward to some in person days under a "blended learning" model in a few weeks. It's all so strange and as adults/parents we worry and wonder what's next and we do our best to create some normalcy. That is really hard given the world is not "normal" right now. So, in that regard, we keep it pretty real with the kids. We all have our role to play around here to make all this work. We make mistakes, we have bad days. So be it.
The unprecedented decisions for the new school year parents are having to make right now are stressful and overwhelming. I talk to my neighbors and friends from all over. I hear the same things.... mostly indecision and concern and a shit ton of what ifs. The struggle is real for many. I get it. It IS a big deal. I had someone ask me how we were so confident in our decision? It wasn't a judgement at all, it was...... I wish I could get there. So here's how... which is my long winded attempt at a blog today.
As a family we reviewed what information we had, careful to sort fact from fiction.
We looked at all the options and made a choice, that for at least right now, makes the most sense for our family. Is it the right choice for us? Yes. Could that change? Hell yes. The world is changing everyday.
We DID not take guidance from social media "experts."
We did not take advice from friends that believe their decision is the ONLY right decision.
We looked at what the kids need. What they want. What is best for them. Then we looked at how we (the parents) could make it work.
And here we are. We are rolling into week two and no one has has had a mental breakdown yet. Ok - I had one mini breakdown last week. I bounced right back. I think. LOL
I have to mention I am INCREDIBLY grateful that my kids are in 5th and 8th grade and relatively independent. Our charter school seems to really have their act together too. Right now - both of us are working from home and have jobs. We must wake up every day, grateful. There is so much struggle out there. I am so sympathetic to everyones situation. We have it pretty easy in comparison to some. It's perspective. So darn important. While all of our struggles and challenges are valid and real we must have perspective. We must be empathic that everyone's situation is unique. We can't possibly know what is like to walk in their shoes, but we must try. We accept and respect their decisions as what is best for them. We support it. We help those that need it when we can, even if that just means showing up or calling to say hello, I'm here. We do our best, we survive and we say - BRING on the HEAT. We got this.
"Empathy has no script. There is no right way or wrong way to do it. It’s simply listening, holding space, withholding judgment, emotionally connecting, and communicating that incredibly healing message of ‘You’re not alone."
- Brene Brown