Passionately Managing Life

My kids aren't afraid of covid. They're afraid of getting shot. There have been 432 murders in Philadelphia as of October 12 2021 with over 1700 people shot this year. Gun violence is rampant in the communities in which the kids I teach live as well as in my own. I am fearful of getting another message that someone I know has been shot and killed daily. I check my phone each morning hoping that my students and family members have made it through another night in Philly. Prayers of protection are abundant. The pandemic and the subsequent shutdown has created an alternate universe where money is both scarce and more easily available, guns are easier to get, drug overdoses are higher than ever, social media beefs result in deaths, jobs are both in abundance yet not for everyone, social interactions are more high stakes and a structured day is less important. There's a sense of heightened agitation prevalent in our communities layered with a feeling of despair. "I want t...