Teacher’s Perspective

A TEACHER’S PERSPECTIVE

Students ace the pandemic protocols By Dennis Lopez

Listening to Bob Marley sing in my headphones about be confusing, especially to someone my age, whose mind is how “every little things goin’ to be alright” makes me focused on tasty Costco samples (they will be back, someday). I hope he is right and forget that we are hunkered down absentmindedly bought a case of toilet tissue as well as a case of and sheltering in place from a worldwide pandemic. paper towels. But we are. The rubber gloves I am wearing as I type this are Yet paper shortages, gloves, mask, germs…all of it cannot mute evidence of my wife’s deep concern for my welfare. I did seem to dampen the indominatable, creative and determined manage to eschew wearing a surgical mask in my own house. human spirit. I see that in my own grown children. Our son

Things taken for granted before, such as going to the post works from home as a data analyst in the Midwest. One office or the grocery store, now seem like a run through the daughter is a drug and alcohol counselor who has kept her sniper-filled streets of Iraq or Afghanistan. At every turn it seems promise to those who seek her help, just not face to face. It’s nature has planted invisible, microbial IEDs; a single wrong done via computer screen. She says it is hard because she is the move, a handshake, a nearby sneeze could bring serious illness kind of counselor who does best in person. Yet her work goes or even death. We dress to leave the house as though preparing on, as does that of my youngest daughter, a recent graduate of for a deep space mission: gloves/check, face mask/check, hand Boise State University’s education program. sanitizer/check; and out the airlock we go. For a long time she taught via computer, now she has returned

This killer virus, this COVID-19, has changed my street, my to her classroom. As a teacher at Lakewood Montessori School, town, my state and my country...our world. For how long is Jenna says the hardest part is explaining the need for extreme anybody’s guess. caution to a room full of 3- to As the death toll climbs, it seems incredible to learn there “They are showing one another a sense of 5-year-olds. “Illness is an abstract concept,” are those willing to buck the state’s social distancing orders to attend meetings in large humanity, of sharing the bond of dealing with an issue larger than themselves,” she patiently she explained to me. “Linking cause and effect is difficult to convey, but children, even very groups rather than follow the directives to avoid groups. explained to me. young children, are remarkable in their ability to adapt.” The order is temporary; death I am not an educator. In fact is permanent. I am certain there is an entire platoon of teachers who would

For our part, Laurie and I are keeping our social distance. In universally agree that I was not even a student. But I can grasp fact, I think it’s been a couple of days since I last saw my wife. I the remarkable picture she paints of the character of children. know she’s in the house because someone shoved a tin of beans She says the concept of germs or pandemics or viruses may and a slice of Velveeta cheese-like substance under my office not resonate with her class of pre-school kids, but they share one door an hour ago with an “I Love You (your name here)” note common goal: to help keep their fellow classmates, parents or written on the napkin. Okay, it wasn’t really a napkin. With the their community at large from getting sick. paper product hoarding that’s been going on, we’re reduced to Free from the polarizing influence of those who deny the need using pages out of one of the coloring books left over from one for precaution or even the reality of this worldwide pandemic, of our kids. of mask-or-no-mask, open or close businesses, or refusal to

Actually, we were pretty well prepared for this pandemic paper socially distance, they are contributors to the greater good. panic. No doubt in our state there are multiple hundreds of So these children, those whom those of us in the adult word folks who regularly stored lots of stuff up for religious reasons. would consider just out of the toddler stage, are in reality more Others because they see storing food and other necessary stuff like focused on helping others as well as themselves remain well. bullets, toilet paper and paper towels as a means to survival in a “They are showing one another a sense of humanity, post-apocalyptic world. of sharing the bond of dealing with an issue larger than

I admit we have cases of Costco toilet paper stored in our themselves,” she patiently explained to me. “It’s a lot like what I garage. Not because we were brilliant pandemic preppers, think Americans were like during wartime, or perhaps postbut because my wife and I rarely are in sync when we shop. 9/11. They are outside of the bounds of politics or societal anger For example, we had two cases of Costco toilet tissue on hand and the polarization that comes from it. because my wife bought one and, on one of my long ago, “They simply want to contribute as a group and as individuals pre-quarantine trips to Costco, told me we needed paper for the betterment of all.” towels. Seems that paper towel and toilet tissue packaging can