People who Need People

I went for a quick walk outside during my lunch period, hoping to find the field that my fellow tree-hugging teacher friend had gushed about earlier in the week. I just had to walk through a quick path in the woods and, boom, there it would be in front of me….or so she had said. 30 minutes later, wearing a tea length dress and flats, I found myself needing to escape the clutches of the woods via someone’s backyard. I looked like the female version of Principal Rooney from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off — you know after he has gone on the hunt for Ferris. Thankfully it was my free period and there was no danger of being late to class. But it really wasn’t one of my finest moments. Scampering up embankments in cute shoes and a new dress is not my idea of fun or productivity.

After my brief but harrowing walk on the wild side, I cleaned myself up, kicked the shoes off my blistered feet, and plowed through another set of online materials that I considered to give my students for this new normal of learning. Finding the right balance of instruction, practice, and fun is daunting. Luckily, I work with an amazing team where the “sharing is caring” concept is alive and well. My fellow Spanish 2 teachers rock (you know who you are). All who know you know that to be true. Thanks, buddies, for helping this mess of a mama out. I couldn’t do it without you.

This week ended with bringing my dear middle child to work with me (it’s allowed) so that I could get a good understanding of what he needs to do on his remote days. I have to say that this blurring between the lines of the usually separate compartments of our lives is helpful in a weird way. Suddenly, our colleagues are not just that. They are fellow mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters. Families, like mine, just doing what they can to get through this tough time. After seeing just how much my son is struggling to get through his Google Classroom work, it was an eye-opening experience for me as a Mom and a teacher. I mentioned this to my students during all my classes and the students seemed to appreciate my “getting it” via my son’s perspective. Though Isaac had come to do his work, he ended up paying far more attention to my lessons and now knows how certain conditions in Spanish use the verb “estar” and others use “tener”. I was seriously impressed. And, for him, perhaps his seeing his Mom in work mode changed his perspective of me. I am no longer just the keeper and distributor of the snacks, I’m a teacher. “When are you going to teach 5th grade?” he asked. I took that as a compliment.

Behind the scenes of all of the above, there is a network of people doing their part to make this work. Branches of support have sprouted all over this globe and I am so very thankful for the branches that I have. The rhythm of our weeks is chaotic and those who willingly step into that chaos is what kindness is all about. In fact, I think it’s more than kindness. It’s really what humanity is all about. In a country where we question the humanity and veracity of our leaders, I know my slice of humanity to be true. Gracefully and gratefully accepting the help of others is hard for us independent walking in the woods folk. I know the saying goes “not all who wander are lost” but the fact is, some who wander are most definitely lost and need help. That help, however, needs to be shoved in the wanderer’s face once in a while in order to wake them up to it. This is the year to openly accept the love and help of others and say “I love you. Thank you.” So instead of watching the powers that be make of mockery of who we are and pull us further into darkness, I will listen to the call of lightness that exists in those that surround me. You all have shown me the power of humanity through food, help, clothes, beer, and gifts. I love you. Thank you.