“God and the Soldier all men adore, In time of trouble and no more, For when war is over And all thing righted, God is neglected, And the Old Soldier slighted.”
― Pax Britannica: Climax of an Empire
If you are a Metro Nashville Public Schools parent, this week presents quite the quandary – to spend next semester going virtual or send your child back into a school building, whenever they open. Parents are being forced to make the decision at a time when COVID-19 cases are rising at an alarming rate, so much so that those who chose in-person for the fall semester are being sent home for the remainder of the year. Further complicating matters, announcements arrive almost daily of a vaccine soon being available. Maybe as soon as mid-Spring. But you’ve got to decide about school by Friday.
As a parent, I’m supposed to take the very limited information available and make a decision that will having a lasting impact on my children, in a very short window of time. A decision that will be carved in stone and will be irreversible, no matter what changes between now and the end of the school year. The ironic part is that MNPS is asking me to make an irrevocable decision while still retaining for themselves the ability to modify it.
Just because I decide to send my children back to school in-person doesn’t mean that they will stay in-person throughout the duration of the school year. Schools may or may not open come January 7th. Schools may stay open all the way until the end of May, or they may close intermittently throughout the Spring based on data the district is closely monitoring. In other words, I’m supposed to make my decision based on a snapshot and intuition, while the district gets to rely on science and a constantly updated data stream. Seems fair, right?
I’ve racked my brain over the weekend trying to think of a single other decision I’m required to make that holds the same level of permanence. The only one I can find is enlisting in the military. If CONTINUE READING: IMPOSSIBLE ENDEAVORS – Dad Gone Wild
