groundhog day

we had two months, a sort-of-summer of maybe we can return to society, a small glimmer of hope, and now a new COVID variant puts cases at over 100,000 in the U.S. yesterday.  we hover around 50% vaccination, just crossing 70% in my county, a fairly progressive county in Southeast Michigan. we are in trouble, and in for more death.  school is happening in person, and while my district is mandating masks, many in Michigan are opening fully without mask precautions, quarantine or testing/outbreak mitigation protocols.  are districts making protocols for this year?  we are headed for another winter of outbreaks, and back and forth to in-person and remote.  again (for those who went back in person last year, we were virtual until May).  like groundhog day of last spring/fall/winter, which increases the trauma that students, teachers and families experience. 

this was preventable, and that's why the anger seethes through so many people.  data is showing that hospitalizations and deaths are over 99% people who are unvaccinated, and while children are less likely to contract COVID than adults, the Delta variant is more aggressive and transmissive.  i respect that there are many reasons people cannot or will not get vaccinated.  but the correlation of those who will not vaccinate and those who will not stay home and abide by mask mandates is evident.  let's value each other's lives and vow to keep each other safe, at the very basic level of common humanity.  this seems too much to ask in America.  

i don't know what this means for what my school year will look like, but i recall a meme about the first year of quarantine, and whew... am i feeling the weight of that today. 

last year, we tried to focus on joy and freedom dreaming toward what the future could be like.  i know that work and writing will continue this year, because to focus on the dystopia of our current world is too much, but it's hard to keep the positivity up.  i think it's worth it to spend the time with young people envisioning what the future could be, as well as giving them space to think, write, process and seek out more help if they need it.  normalize talking about mental health, telling stories, getting through conflict with words.  know that it's okay to not be okay, and that we'll try to be there for each other, but we will all have dark days.  these are dark times, and we must grieve.  we will have new leadership, so much of my year will be about navigating change, god is change, and how we go with the flow of that, and shape it to be what we want it to be.  if anyone can do it, it's the ACCE team. 

august is a monthlong Sunday.  i try to relax but feel the fall behind me, lurking.  i can't truly rest.  i get inspired, write things down, look for readings, songs and videos to play in class.  get excited about school and seeing students and colleagues (hopefully in person for awhile).  scurry to see people i love, miss and didn't see all summer.  run all the errands, avoid all the school supply shopping until the very last minute. it is easy to get caught up in the frenetic energy of Sunday.

this year, i will try to keep the priority on me, firmly, as it has been all July.  i became a master of not paying attention to work email and doing what i want to do more often.  i want to carry that into the rest of the year and make the space to love myself each day, separate from screens after work and truly be in the present moment.  there will be change, and we will keep winning, inshallah.  this is how i will get through the 2nd year of quarantine.