Prior to quarantine, social distancing, and all that has come with COVID-19, the phrase “it takes a village” could have been put on a nice wooden sign or on a greeting card. Now, it should be etched in stone on a tablet and displayed for all to see. As we are in the midst of months of quarantine, I have to say thank you. Thank you to our village for your support, patience, and flexibility during this crazy time.
Pre-COVID, my son had an actual schedule (remember those?) where he split his time between his grandmothers and then daycare the remaining days. Daycare was also special because my sister-in-law and husband’s cousin both work there. This week, we received a nine-page letter from our school outlining the new projected guidelines for when they reopen. It’s a lot. Thinking about the new school environment is intense and nerve-wracking, to say the least. But we know our village — family members, friends, and daycare employees — are doing all they can do look out for us.
Working remotely went from being a benefit to being the full-time default, and with a toddler it is a whole new kind of “day at the home office.” As I work on this, my son has his arm in my glass of water, and yesterday I worked while sitting with him in a kayak in our backyard. It’s truly a new adventure every day. Being able to ask for help just wasn’t an option in the beginning. We have high-risk family members who would normally get to see Jackson regularly, whether to babysit him or simply to visit.
My amazing grandmother is 96 and looks forward to seeing her only great-grandchild weekly, and because she lives independently we were able to do socially distanced visits and “drive-bys” to drop off surprise McFlurries. She hugged him for the first time in two months on Mother’s Day, and I know it meant a lot to them both.
As our world begins to reopen, work demands have picked up and we have been scrambling to create a new schedule (you know, the kind that could change at any moment), set up childcare, and figure out what the next phase will bring for our family. I know we are lucky to be close to family members and friends who are available as we all move forward. Cheers to all the members of our village!
