Today I find myself stuck at home in a snow storm with sick kids. A couple years ago this sort of thing would have wrecked me. The prospect of an entire day alone with grumpy, irritable kids, and no one to give me a break. The feeling of having no control over when they will feel better and be able to get back to school. The Fear Of Missing Out, having to cancel commitments or events, feeling the pressure (real or imaginary) to do everything and being forced instead to do nothing.

The pandemic has solved some of these problems for me. When there’s nothing going on there’s nothing to miss out on. And when school definitely does not want snotty sniffling kids in the building, the decision to keep them home is easy and I don’t feel pressured to get them back there prematurely.