Back to school
Emi
Emi sat next to her daughter, holding her hand. “I don’t understand. They think I’m heartless.”
Still recovering from her recent stint in the hospital, Kiko’s voice labored with effort as she replied, “Why, Mom?”
“I don’t know. In this American culture, I never know…”
But Emi knew. Amidst a pandemic, she was choosing to open her school. In-person. She knew there would be a backlash, but she didn’t expect so much. A loud minority of parents were upset. An even louder majority of teachers.
It wasn’t that they were upset that bothered her. It was that they doubted her motivations. Their complaints were laced with the undertone. The undertone that she was putting her profit over their safety. She sighed and looked at Kiko resting,
“I’m not scared to make a decision that hurts me. I was the first person to shut down my school! Before we were told!”
It was true. She had canceled in-person learning very early in the pandemic, before any mandated closures from the government. That was a time of uncertainty. We knew so little about what we were facing, only that it was going to get worse before it got better. Now, things were so different. Tears welled up in her eyes,
“In the last few months, taking care of you, there was no one other than me. I came to the hospital every day. I wore my mask. I washed my hands. I cleaned everything. I know we can prevent this because I’ve done it. It’s possible. I wouldn’t open our school if I didn’t know that for sure…”
“Of course, Mom. I’d never have made it through this without you. I know we can each control this if we take the right steps. But maybe people don’t trust each other to do that Mom.”
“Kiko, our school is a community. Without trust, what does a community have?”
Stephanie
Stephanie looked at her husband in disbelief. “Can you believe she is forcing us to return? This is outrageous! Doesn’t she know the danger she’s putting us in?”
Jake rubbed her hand tenderly. Gently, he tried to redirect her thinking,
“You know, Emi’s got a business to run. She’s said you can do more of your class time outside and you have the space in your room to keep distance…you know we need the money right now Steph.”
The money. The damn money. She was underpaid and underappreciated, but Jake was right. They did need the money.
“Of course we need the money, Jake. But you know I’m at risk with my medical conditions. And flu season is right around the corner.”
It’s not like Jake wasn’t scared. He just felt they couldn’t live their lives in hiding forever. At some point, they had to be willing to assess the risks and confront them in the right ways.
“Steph, we’ve learned how to be careful. We’ve been wiping down packages and groceries and wearing our masks. The cases are going down slowly but surely in our area, and there are practically no cases in the school’s zip code. The community has shown we can be responsible.”
Stephanie was not to be allayed so easily,
“Come on Jake. That’s BS and you know it. We may have been wearing our masks but we’ve both seen a bunch of people not doing it. And I know these families. They’re always traveling. Remember that couple you met at the gala last year - Jeff and Abby? He’s in sales - and he sure didn’t seem like a cautious one drinking that night...”
Jake sighed…
“Look, Steph, you know how I feel. But it’s up to you hun. If we need to get by this year without your job, we can make it work. We always do.”
Jeff
The kids barged into the room, the closed door and clear instructions posing no obstacle to their desires. A few months ago, Abby and Jeff would have had some strict words for their two boys. But not anymore. More than six months into a pandemic, the concept of personal space had lost all meaning. Pretending they weren’t there, Jeff picked up where he left off,
“We’ve gotten used to making things work with them online. We’ve been able to stay safe. Isn’t it too soon to pretend things are back to normal? You know Emi’s just doing this because all the parents are clamoring for a big discount for distance learning…”
Abby paused before she responded. She didn’t want to come across as uncaring. A bad mother. But she knew Jeff used “we” generously. He helped. He always has good intentions. But the burden of their care sits with Abby. She’s the one who deals with their tantrums…getting them to focus during the day. She’s the one who never gets a mental break. Boy, could she use one.
“In March, we didn’t know what we were dealing with. Now, we do. The school protocols look reasonable. The kids have shown they can wear masks.”
Jeff interrupted,
“It’s not our kids following the rules that I’m worried about. Cases here have been almost non-existent. But what about all the exposure coming from these teachers? You’ve met Timmy’s teacher Stephanie…she’s practically a college kid? Her town has a lot more cases and who knows how safe she’s keeping at home?”
Abby thought back to her limited interactions with Stephanie. She was great with the kids and seemed nice. She did look young… was she trustworthy?
“I don’t know…Jeff, they miss their friends. We can’t wait forever.”