Little by Little. 7/24/21

Back to school is going to be tough on our littles. I’m not sure what will happen with the delta variant, not sure if they will close everything down again. I had signed Boop up for a summer program at school, only to learn days before that they would not be requiring masks, no social distancing, and no symptom monitoring. It was quite a blow. Boop declared emphatically that she would not go, and if she did go, she would not wear a mask.

How can I ease her into life outside during our brief break from the virus while numbers are low? I got a text asking me about an event to promote voting rights, and I thought, ‘This will be our chance. It’s an outdoor event. We won’t get close to folks. We can wear masks.’ As the day arrived, the weather was beautiful. We lucked out, I thought. There was a discrepancy between the time of the event from the person who texted vs. the time that I saw online, but I figured the person texting may have made a mistake. So, I tried to get Boop moving at the earlier time. “I’m not going.” She declared. I asked her what was going on, but all I got was, “I’m not going.” I cajoled. I negotiated. I even brought Gammy into it. Finally, we got out the door. I figured once she got there and saw her people, she would enjoy it.

I don’t know how long it took me to get her out of the car, but ultimately, we eased our way over to the edge of the crowd. We saw our pastor. I was hopeful. I kept looking for kids we knew that were Boop’s age. We saw our neighbor and some other local leaders that Boop knew. Yet, we didn’t see her besties. I suggested that we walk to the library, which she hadn’t seen for over a year, but they had just closed. We doubled back by the event on our way to the car but no luck. I was determined not to let this day end on a sour note. Having just received a membership renewal for Sam’s, I knew the promise of her first trip for a hotdog and Sobe would be irresistible. She ate in the car, starting with her ice cream. 

Because I said I would be there later, I drove back by the event in one last effort, but I didn’t see anyone that I knew. I drove home with a girl ready to go to school. We were a few minutes late for our cat and chicken sitting, but as you can see, the kitty was no worse for wear. Ultimately, Boop did go to school and was in much better spirits. Sadly, we are having trouble with mask-wearing at school, as she is the only one in her class that is even trying to wear one. This lax attitude from school gets more troubling as the case numbers rise.