“Improvise, adapt, and overcome.”
U.S. Marine Corps
Dearest Julia,
So here we are in the midst of this global Coronavirus outbreak. School is cancelled — for you and I both — and we are thrown upon each other. We are to “shelter in place,” and it is just you, your sister, Mommy, and me. At home. Indefinitely.
We might have intense, positive interactions which we will remember for the rest of our lives. Or we might come close to wanting to kill each other. Maybe a little bit of both?
We live in strange days, and events have conspired so that here we are. Public school is cancelled; home school is in effect. But your mother and I are almost uniquely qualified to do this. You have mentioned several times how you hate 7th grade. You speak with vehemence that “school is horrible” and claim that all your friends feel the same. This is dangerous ground, Julia. You might have a sub-par teacher, or you might not like a certain field of study, but do not decide that you dislike learning in general. Your whole family — your entire upbringing — speaks otherwise.
So let’s start fresh here, daughter/pupil. Home school is in session! Thomas Jefferson and people like him in the past learned at home with tutors, and he did just fine. With the cancelling of organized schooling because of an outbreak of infectious disease you and I are now in a similar situation.
What would you like to study over the next several months? I have some ideas, but I would like to hear from you.
More Shakespeare? Eleanor of Aquitaine? To Kill a Mockingbird? Learn about some of the famous classical composers and their music? The French and Indian War? The Last of the Mohicans? The writing process? Grammar?
We already read The Outsiders together and you watched the 1983 Francis Ford Coppola film version with your mother. Let’s continue in that same manner.
Julia, so much of success in life revolves around how one takes advantage of the opportunities presented. Because of the COVID-19 virus outbreak, we have been presented with challenges as well as opportunities. To the extent we can, let’s minimize the challenges thrust upon us and maximize the opportunities to learn and grow — both as individuals and as a family.
I am excited to start!
I love you.
Very Truly Yours,
Daddy
P.S. I also engaged today with my younger daughter, Elizabeth. Check it out!
One Comment
Julia
Dear Daddy,
I enjoyed reading your post and look forward to making good use of this time. Although some may think of this as summer come early, I think that this will be a good time to learn and grow as a family. I am so excited to see what this new way of life will bring! Love you!