Celery Farm September 4, 2020

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Skylands September 4, 2020

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back to school on the front lines

My youngest daughter who loves to teach children 

Now directed to return to the physical classroom

Anxiously awaits the likelihood of being exposed to the virus 

Doing in person instruction in a time of pandemic

The first day back starting a new school year

When happy excited voices will bubble in the halls

Silent danger will be hanging from aerosol droplets in the air

And an invisible threat will lurk on every surface 

Thinking about this scares me as it must scare her

Dismayed that I am helpless to do anything to protect her

Trying to keep my worries from adding weight onto hers

Knowing she will be at risk in harm's way

For individuals caught up in their particular circumstances

The larger societal context is an abstract concept

Offering no specific answers to daily life decisions 

How to stay safe doing what you have to do 

We all hope to survive and share joys with our loved ones

Taking precautions to the extent that we can

But the front line workers who have to function in the face of fear

They are the exemplars of everyday real courage

Tamarack Trail September 1, 2020

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