Lela Coker

Oh be careful what you wish for. At the beginning of the spring semester, I remember telling another teacher when I was feeling particularly overwhelmed, “I just need everything around me to stop, so I have time to catch up before anything else can get added to my plate.” I didn’t mean it quite so literally. 

Usually the Friday before spring break means everyone is a little distracted and eager for their week off. The Friday before spring break this year everyone was still a little distracted for different reasons. It was the same day the first two cases of Covid-19 had been reported in Austin, meaning the virus we had been hearing about on the news for weeks was finally hitting our city. Before leaving school to head home that day I backed up the whole yearbook project folder on my external harddrive “just in case.” Thank goodness I did! I never dreamed that we would be finishing the 2020 yearbook remotely. 

Since we are entering day 24 of not leaving the house (except for two trips to HEB, and one trip to pick up pizza) I have learned that I do not only like, but need, structure. I would never excel in a profession where working from home is the norm. Most of my students know I’m a little scatterbrained to begin with, so trying to wrap my head around teaching classes remotely while getting distracted every 15 minutes by laundry, dishes in the sink and Netflix is not making it any better. 

But I am slowly adjusting to this new normal, since it appears it will be this way for the rest of the school year. I have turned a guest room into my “office” so I have a dedicated workspace that does not include a TV. I have tried to take advantage of this beautiful spring weather and walk my dogs more and ride bikes around the neighborhood with my husband. I found a few free online hand lettering classes so maybe I’ll have time to finally figure out how to do that. I have streamed online pilates and yoga classes and at some point I’ll get around to cleaning out my closet.

It’s ironic that during this time of social distancing I have finally had time to Facetime and catch up with old college friends who I hadn’t talked to in way too long, calling my grandmother several times a week to check and our family group chat has never been so active. I have met more of my neighbors as we have all been out and about more walking dogs and literally hanging out in the front yard. We are using this time of forced separation to reconnect. 

I miss being with my students in person. They are my favorite part of my job! But while we are apart, I hope that we all take this extended break to refocus and redirect what truly matters to us. May it teach us not to take things for granted- even things like morning traffic, homework/grading papers and having to wear real pants on a daily basis.