When the days are all the same

How do you write a blog post and an update, when so much of your life still feels the same? — A lot of people right now probably.

May 11. We’re opening the school on May 11th. This has been our mantra for two weeks now. The end is in sight, the time is coming when the monotony will be over, and we’ll be back to doing life. Normalcy is coming.

And not that the days have been bad. We took food to our neighbors, who then returned food to us, and we kept exchanging food for about a week after Easter. We brought them a present for the New Year. They sent us bamboo soup with rice. We haven’t exchanged food as much, but their smile when they see us looks more real because now- they know us. I hope we can continue that relationship when school’s back in session. School opens May 11th.

I’ve worked out more in the past month and a half than I have in a long time, so that’s definitely not a waste. Have you tried to get 10,000 steps without leaving your house or your driveway? It’s monotonous at best, but if you’ve got a good audiobook I highly recommend it. I’ll have to walk more and stand more when I teach, tucking my phone into my skirt to I can count my steps. But to be honest I probably won’t, so I’ll keep walking until May 11th.

We get out maybe once a day. Our neighbor/teammate comes too!

There have been days where I don’t do much of anything for sure. I’ve been reading, watching TV, calling friends at almost any hour of the day. It’s strange to still have days where I feel so tired, but I guess walking around your carport the equivalent of a few miles will do that to you. Or maybe that’s what the quarantine does to you. Or sometimes you just need a Saturday, even though it’s only Tuesday. Stay in your room for a day, it’ll be over soon…right?

We post videos on facebook three times a week in an effort to continue the children’s education and stay connected. It’s been fun to see how many views we can get. It’s been sad to feel the time slipping away. I sing and dance, I teach and play, even if it’s only me that’s doing it. I look at the comments. I can’t wait to see them on May 11th.

Hello Students! How are you today?

I’m interviewing with schools in the USA, meaning that all my interviews are happening in the middle of the night. Have you ever interviewed for a job at midnight? It’s a wild ride, and it’s exciting to see what may happen next. Quarantine makes it really convenient for me because no one has even asked if I could come in for an interview. Everything’s online! They’re surprised when I tell them what time it is, but I’m grateful for the interview anyway! It will be harder to interview when schools start back on May 11th. I won’t get to sleep in!

This picture was taken at 12:20am.

Watching TV. Making bread. Reading the Word. Working out. Sleeping in. Loving neighbors. Being with just my Quaranteam. So glad to have my team.

Two more weeks. One more week. May 11th.

And then the text comes.

Almost too predictably, though I had tucked those doubts away. Schools will not open on May 11th. Maybe the next week. Or the next. But not on May 11th.

It’s okay to be sad, and I am. I know that many of you have faced the same hopes and doubts and disappointments. I started this blog post in the hope that I would be sharing good news and more pictures of life beginning to go back to normal, but like most of the world, we’ll just keep doing what we were doing. We’re safe. Still healthy. Still at home.

One day soon, we’ll have more than window views.