Not just donuts!

 

My friend Betty and I celebrated an historic moment: our completion of the two Covid vaccines! How to celebrate? How about a “make donuts” celebration!?!

We (well, okay… SHE) made donuts. (I “supervised” and taste-tested!) Then, we put them out in the hallway in baggies so the neighbors could help themselves. 

It was a simple but fun way to celebrate the new freedom (from the stress of getting sick, mostly!) we both have attained through completion of our Covid vaccinations. 

Yup… they pass the
quality test!

I am cleared to go back to teaching face-to-face on Feb. 22. (Fourteen days have to pass to let the second shot get up to “full” protection.) My students have been back to school since Feb. 8… and I’ve been continuing to teach them from home. So now, finally, I can teach them face-to-face! It’s been almost a full year (March 18, 2019 was our last day of school). 

Yes, our “normal” is new. It still includes masks and face shields and lots of handwashing and disinfecting. But hopefully by being together we can help support our students in new ways. So many of them have been traumatized by the sickness and deaths they have witnessed. Every single kid in my Grade 3-4 reading and math class has mourned the death of a close family member from Covid. And, unable to do the traditional ceremonials for burial, nor gather together to mourn and celebrate those who died has made things even harder (for adults as well as kids.) 

This experience is, of course, connected to the similar experiences of millions all around our global community…. but in the microcosm of our tribal community, it feels uniquely raw and very painful. As “first responders” for mental health needs, we teachers will continue to do more than “just teach.” 

Youth suicide has taken an upswing in the past 8 months. Children as young as age 8 or 9 have attempted. This “mental health first aid” responsibility has been part of what we do at our school in “normal” times; it’s become harder, and even more important, during the pandemic because suffering kids can so easily get stuck in isolation.

Let us join in prayer for these kids and families, and kids and families all around the world who suffer the social and emotional effects of pandemic. Prayer- and being able to TELL kids they are being prayed for- makes a huge difference.