MANCHESTER, NH – Editor’s Note: One week ago our school community came together to answer the call to a community crisis. At the front lines were teachers, paraprofessionals and administrators who, with little lead time, created a “new normal” for students who would be staying home from school due to the COVID-19 protocol.
In the crush of vital information and updates, this priceless glimpse of community spirit was momentarily lost. One week later, the narrative shifts. What was “normal” last week will change. What is utmost is that people do not lose heart. What is utmost is that everyone understands that getting through this crisis with as few casualties as possible is what matters most.
March 16, 2020 – While students in Manchester School District are safely social-distancing in their homes, the school buildings themselves have been a whirlwind of activity. Staff from all departments have come together to distribute Chromebooks to students lacking technology and meals to students needing breakfast and lunch. Every morning, principals, teachers and paras gather by the cafeteria to load buses with boxed meals then hop on board to distribute them throughout the city.
Next week, academic work will be distributed as well. Students of all ages have been delighted to see familiar school faces coming to their neighborhood, and staff have been just as excited to greet their students … from a distance. Teachers have created virtual classrooms, students are checking in online, and everyone is ready to embark on what can only be described as a great adventure, for however long it lasts.
“And the people stayed home, and read books, and listened, and rested, and exercised, and made art, and played games, and learned new ways of being, and were still. And listened more deeply. Some meditated, some prayed, some danced. Some met their shadows. And the people began to think differently. And the people healed. And, in the absence of people living ignorant, dangerous, mindless, and heartless ways, the earth began to heal. And when the danger passed, and the people joined together again, they grieved their losses, and made new choices, and dreamed new images, and created new ways to love and heal the earth fully, as they had been healed.” – by Kitty O’Meara
