Grief has a calendar. People have been telling me that it'll take a year at a minimum. And that other things like crying daily will change. I did not believe this to be possible, but it happened--I no longer cry every day. Even my weird nausea has mostly abated without medical assistance. I'm now in a new phase where it is "How have you been?" from someone I haven't seen in a while that makes me cry--because the last time I saw them, things were likely very different.
But this past week, I had a very good reason to cry. A non-binary elementary school music teacher was recently hired in the small rural school district to the north of us. Things were going well until there was the usual hate and outrage about kids needing to learn "non traditional pronouns" etc. At the public hearing, as a student relayed it, all this was shared in detail by two very vocal people. And then... over 70 teachers, students, parents, members of the community spoke up in support of the teacher. The school supervisor had always been supportive, but the Board could see in real time how much the community did not want to give in to hate. Here's something of a live report. I'm glad to have a "good" reason to cry.
Pic: Another amaryllis blooming: this is one I bought myself a couple of years ago from the $3 discount bin.
16 comments:
I am glad you had a good reason to cry. That is such an encouraging story. It’s good to be reminded that there are good people in the world.
What a wonderful story, thank you for sharing it!
How do you care for your amaryllis between blossoms? Wondering if I can keep mine alive and if so, might it bloom next year.
Good story.
There ARE good people out there and they are the ones we're doing all the work for. It's good to have a reminder of that.
Oh thank goodness, as I was reading this I felt the despair welling up and then...hearing that people were standing up in support was really hopeful. Also hopeful - we both have amaryllis blooms to enjoy!
Hooray for allies and community support.
Maybe now even more than ever, Lisa!
I'm not a good Amaryllis caretaker, J; I think I've just been lucky. But I looked it up and I'll send you a reel that looks legit.
Agree :)!
Agree! Also good to know we're not the only ones fighting--there are others doing amazing work!
Yes, Nicole... I didn't know how the story was going to end when the student was telling it either! I thought our blooms were quite matchy!
Yes, Steph; I felt immensely heartened by this!
All the hope in this post was uplifting. Big wins and good news!
All those people practicing your kindness rule <3
I didn't hear about that, so thanks for sharing the link. That's inspiring. As for grief -- it has a calendar but the calendar is fluid. We stop the tears eventually. But the loss doesn't ever end, it just gets reshelved, like a book that started out on the coffee table where you could see it every day and thumb through the pages -- the good and the bad. Then one day it is moved to a slightly less visible spot and eventually to a shelf -- but one where you can take it out and read it again, thumb through the pages like sweet memories and then put it back until you're ready for another look. "How've you been" can be a tough one to answer and I've tried to replace it with "How're you doing today?" (which isn't always better but more specific and easier to channel). Sending big hugs. I don't know how I missed this one.
Thanks, Jeanie... "How're you doing today?" does seem a useful metric... I could even use it on myself :). And I hope I get to see you soon <3
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