Columnists
Sectioning the pool
If statistics and medical predictions are correct, the next couple of weeks will be telling, as regards COVID-19. Were we too hasty to send everyone back to the classrooms of the province? Are we becoming too comfortable with the foe, aka COVID-19? Because I’m a parent, my biggest concern is for the youngest of the students. Elementary kids, even if they act all grown-up, don’t really know what the heck is going on. Mostly they just want to be back in the school yard with their friends, and maybe learn something about the world along the way. For the most part, back-toschool happened this week and last. Schools around the province are struggling to make the return safe for everyone. Locally, it’s been interesting to walk past Prince Edward Community School (aka PECI) on my daily hike. I seem to hit Princess Street just as the secondary students are spilling out to enjoy their morning break in small, close groups, as teenagers do. Watching them laugh and jostle and chat and shout as I hike by brings to mind a phrase a friend once used about having a “peeing section in the community swimming pool”. I guess it could be said there’s now “the COVID-19 section of the school yard”. More than half of the students were without masks— by my rough, walking by, guesstimate. On the bright side, they were outside, having a good time and the wind was blowing, as it does in the County. I’m not a religious person, so no prayers from me, but I do hope they’re kept safe from potential infections.
Our school-aged grandchildren were back in the classroom last week for orientation and this week for “regular” classes. The decision to send them back was not an easy one for our children, their parents. Up until the last moment, the Mississauga grand-girl may or may not have been heading into the hallowed halls of learning. In the end, having weighed all of the pros and the cons and having studied all of the statistics in their school area, she got the go-ahead from her parents, she packed her backpack and headed in. In a “kid messenger message” she proclaimed it to be a big thumbs up, but I’m not sure she really understands what a Petri dish a crowded classroom could be. The Belleville grand-girl has been back for almost a week and happy to be out from under the watchful eye of her working-athome dad. She proclaimed it wasn’t exactly exciting spending all of that time on the other side of the dining table/office/classroom with her father. While the Quinte area may not be a hotbed of COVID-19 cases, active cases arising from back-to-school is a possibility when kids have been away for seven months and there hasn’t really been any control over who they’ve been in contact with or where they’ve been during their time away. Right now, back to school (in the big, or the little smoke) is a bit of a crapshoot. Two weeks from now will be the proof of the pudding. Like I said, I’m not religious, but I might become prayerful sometime soon.
As a parent, I can’t imagine having to make a decision about schooling for my children, under these pandemic circumstances. I have to admit, I did get a little tense when our children were school-aged and there was an outbreak of chickenpox, or measles or influenza and, once or twice, a mess of head lice. LOML and I only wanted our children to be safe. Yeah, I know chickenpox and head lice aren’t the same as COVID-19, but it was what we dealt with in the olden days. If I were a parent now, I suppose our children would be staying at home until medical science came up with a viable vaccine. I would have been that day-drinking, homeschooling, crazy-talking Mom who lost track of the days of the week, forgot to shower and let the kids eat pretzels for breakfast. The homeschoolin’ uniform would be comfy pants, a sweatshirt and fluffy slippers. I am in awe of today’s education and educational support workers who have headed into the unknown to deliver the readin’ writin’ and ’rithmetic to our future adults. I am sure if I were a teenager, in these trying times, I’d be the mouthy one without the mask. I’d, most definitely, be the one who figured it couldn’t happen to me. I’d be the one heading toward Main Street in search of “a slice and a pop” or “fries and nuggets”. I’d be the kid who shared my Coke and fries, along with my homework and lip balm. I wouldn’t have heard the word and wouldn’t have heeded the warnings. I was that kid.
Cheers to the students, to the teachers, to the educational support workers and to the caregivers/parents/grandparents/the students’ adults. It’s an intense and tense time. Y’all need a big, shiny, red apple! I’d prefer mine in pie form.
Comments (0)