Dear Teacher on a Planning Day,
Look out bladder. Today's her day. For once, the sound of the bell won't cue her for a bathroom break.
At lunch, she's going to eat food, real food- hot food- not a peanut butter protein bar that tastes like dried dog food.
When she chews, she's going to savor each morsel. Between bites, she's going to leisurely converse with colleagues she hasn't seen since preplanning. She's also going to remember that she once loved to laugh and that she likes people, especially adult people with a W-2.
For today, please don't tell her to put on her mask. It's already wadded up in the bottom of her purse next to a piece of Juicy Fruit and some loose coins. It's going to stay there too because her face needs a break. She deserves to breathe freely.
She's also going to wear jeans. If she's one of the lucky ones who still has a metabolism, she'll be sporting a French tuck with a fashionable belt. If a second c-section stole her abs, she might opt for a loose school pride shirt, but either way, jeans are a nonnegotiable.
Eventually, she'll get around to some planning, but the warm meal and side splitting laughter is the medicine she needs most to heal her aching heart. Being in close proximity to people who are carrying the same burden reminds her there was a time not so long ago that the terms "quarantine" and "social distancing" were not part of her daily vocabulary. The thought gives her hope that in the not so distant future these words will vanish from her vocabulary as quickly as they entered.
Until then, she creates a playlist on her computer and cranks up the volume. She sings along as Carole King belts out words of wisdom and life.
"When the road looks rough ahead
And you're miles and miles from your nice warm bed, you just remember what your old pal said,
"Boy, you've got a friend in me
Yeah, you've got a friend in me."
As she drives home, she begins to regret not accomplishing more but reassures herself that planning in a pandemic is like building a sand castle with looming rain clouds.
The best laid plans are going to melt anyway, but a good friend to links arms with on the rough road ahead is always rock solid.
Who are you linking arms with today?
-CDB