#schoolclosings

This afternoon Alabama Governor, Kay Ivey, announced that Alabama schools will remained closed until next school year. It is going to be a difficult time for students and teachers. If you have a teacher in your life please keep us in your thoughts, because for us it is more than just school. We are worried about our kids.

I am worried about my kids.

I am worried for the girl who lost her grandmother over Christmas. Who is going to ask her how she’s doing and make sure she smiles at least once during the day.

I worry about the girl who was sent to live with her aunt and feels as though everyone in her life has abandoned her and sometimes questions if it’s worth going on. Who is going to stand in the hall with her and tell her that things will be brighter someday, that she doesn’t have to have all the answers now, that it’s going to be okay.

I worry about the girl who has to translate for everyone in her family because she’s the only one who speaks English and she sometimes just cries because of the pressure. Who’s going to listen to her stories about her pets in Spanish so she can have a short break from the madness?

I worry about my boy who feels like the world is out to get him. Who has to put a wall against everyone around him. Who is going to ask him questions about his hair so that he can feel smart because he’s teaching someone else something for a change.

I worry about my boy who’s almost given up. Who doesn’t want to try anymore. Who is going to give him that tough love to make him get up and do something, be something for just one day.

I worry about the girl who has a rough home life, who feels lost in a crowd of eight children and four fathers/stepfathers. Who’s going to tell her she looks good, or that her hair is nice, so that she knows that someone is noticing her.

I worry about the girl who feels like she’s stupid. Who feels like she isn’t good enough and that she isn’t worth the effort. Who is going to remind her how smart she is, and brag on her when she makes a good grade or says the right answer in class?

I worry about my boy who has been an all A student his whole life but is cracking under the pressures of high school and ninth grade and becoming a man. Who is going to tell him to breathe and that it’s okay to struggle in life, it doesn’t make you a failure, it just makes you human.

I worry for my boy who is told at home by his mother and his brother that he needs to be a man, but is scared because he has no father and doesn’t know what a man is and how he’s supposed to be it. Who’s going to remind him that growing up isn’t done in a day and that right now in this moment he’s doing what he’s supposed to be doing and he’s doing it right.

I worry about my girl who feels like she’s done too much wrong already and that it’s not worth trying to clean her act up now because everyone sees her as a screw up already so why not be what everyone says she is. Who’s going to remind her that it’s not over yet. Her life has only begun. Don’t throw away the whole book just because you didn’t like the first page.

I worry for my girl who has had to be a mother to all her friends and brothers since she was a little child and often feels she has to be strong and stoic against the world. Who’s going to remind her that she can have a few small moments where she can put sticker on her face and just be a kid.

I worry for my girl who lost her mother last year and is having to step into her womanhood alone. Who is going to remind her that she can still be a leader and a hero, and that she’s strong enough to make it through to the other side of high school, even if she has to make that journey alone.

I worry for all my student having to work long nights to make ends meet, who need a safe place to rest and just be, but that safe place is now gone.

I worry for all my student on free and reduced lunch, who needed school because it was two steady meals, but now those meals are gone.

I worry for my seniors who have fought and worked for twelve long years to reach this point of celebration, but now that celebration is gone.

If you have a teacher in your life be gentle with them these next months, because we will be spending these months hoping and praying that even though we can’t reach our students to meet those needs that go beyond the school books that somehow, someway, our babies are going to be okay.

Pray for us teachers.

Widespread school closings and delays are happening today as winter weather sweeps across several states. Snow, ice, and flooding continue to disrupt travel and force schedule changes. Stay safe and keep an eye on updates. 🌨️⚠️