June 01st, 2020

     Holy cow, my last post was from November. Let's see, since then, we've had winter holidays, COVID-19, distance learning, stay at home orders, and the Minneapolis Uprising. I probably forgot some stuff as well.

     I was able to do one school event right before the winter break, before MN schools went to distance learning. A friend from college was the librarian at Central Public Schools, in Norwood Young America. In addition to reading for all the kids, I got to catch up with her as well.

     Corona virus, you wretched thing, you. Like everyone, it took a while to get used to this new normal. We stay home, we wear masks, we wash hands incessantly.. Many fun things were wiped off the table, and while I did mourn for the spring and summer I thought I would have, I am mostly grateful. Grateful that my family is still all healthy, that my husband still has a job, that our public schools did one heck of a job getting distance learning together at the drop of a hat, that I was able to help my kids through distance learning, we learned a lot together.
     I know people whose kids must struggle through this process alone, with adults at work. It was not a perfect system, and the situations at home are so vast that it makes equal education impossible. It will be interesting to see what September brings.

     It is never too early to talk to your kids about race. I am white and so are my kids. We talk about the advantages they have because of how they look, that they are totally unearned. We talk about saying something when you see people treated unfairly. We talk about being an ally. George Floyd was an innocent black man killed by a white police officer. I talk to my kids about that, about how this isn't the first time, how we have to help it stop. 
    I have family in Minneapolis. In the last few nights they were ready to protect their neighborhood and home from people intending to do harm. Not people protesting police brutality, but people taking advantage of a chaotic situation to further their platform. People like white supremacists.
    As a country, as a world, we've been through a lot. And I've been through considerably less because I have white skin. I still believe most people on this planet are good. I try to find the good and make some good every day, as do many people. I remember to hold my family dear and hold tight the thought of better days to come. And show up, do the work to make it happen. 

I love you!

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