Return to School

I’ve lived my life fueled by guilt, whether it’s taking the last piece of---well, everything---to my wife having to work and take care of two kids for two days while I awaited the results of my Covid-19 test (thankfully negative).

I’m hoping that August 3, 2020, won’t go down as the worst guilt trip ever. 

Yes, that’s the day my son Connor started first grade at Greenbrier Elementary School in Evans, Georgia. Homeschooling was an option, but it wasn’t really a choice. 

When the pandemic raged last March and schools went to online only, I became the de-facto homeschool teacher. Using lesson plans laid out by his kindergarten teacher it was fine for a while, but by mid-April, he was tired of that and me, referred to as “the worst teacher ever.” 

There was trepidation in choosing the in-person option, but Columbia County hasn’t been nearly as hard hit as surrounding areas and the safety guidelines instituted look to be about the best that can be done. I pray my son doesn’t contract the virus, or any of the teachers or staff there. 

Did the school open too early? Probably, it actually started a week before it normally does. The economy figured into that equation. Each year, the school system’s spring break is centered around the Masters. Teachers work the tournament in a variety of capacities, residents rent their houses for the week and get out of town and retail venues see a windfall. 

The postponement of the tournament in April forced it to reschedule to November, so an extra week had to be accounted for in the school schedule. Of course that will all be rendered moot if no patrons are allowed on the course. It’s a long way off, we’ll see. 

I’m giving Columbia County the benefit of the doubt as to when it opened. After all, they did end school two weeks early last spring, possibly saving me from a nervous breakdown.