I ran into a colleague in the elevator on campus, and we said hi, cheerfully, and I asked how she was doing, and she said, “Oh, dragging a little bit. After spring break.”
I replied, “After the last two years.” We both laughed, but with that slightly exhausted, bitter edge that says, yup, it has been remarkably difficult being a teacher the last two years.
At least we’re sprinters, rather than endurance runners — many of us will take a break from teaching in the summer. Even though we’ll still be reading, writing, trying to publish, doing course prep, it’s definitely a rest, not actually being in the classroom (especially the hybrid classroom, which I’m still teaching in, since one of my students is immuno-compromised, and Zooms in for every class).
And she and I were both wearing flowery dresses (you can’t see the flowers in the photo, they’re on the bottom and the sleeves of my dress, so you’ll have to trust me), and we had our curly, colorful hair (hers is a gorgeous red), and we’re still here, students. We’re still here for you. We’re going to try our best to get you across the finish line. We can all collapse together at the end of the semester.
It’s chilly today, but the crocuses are out and really, spring is here. Even better, summer’s coming. Hang in there.