
September 8, 2020 · 0 Comments
By Constance Scrafield
They were and still are, although young children could be confused – or entertained to the point of giggles – by the dual use of the word – bubble. Soft floaty orbs, produced by a blow, puffing a birthday candle breath through a ring that has been dipped in liquid soap. Ever since forever, right?
Now, suddenly, it means all the people you’re allowed to have near you without a mask on: parents, guardians but maybe not grandma. Siblings. Come school days, could be only three or four other kids you know, in the same little bubble, every day to play with at recess.
But not just any kid; going into school, you’ll have to keep that big space between you and each other – don’t come near me, stay back or I’ll tell. Could be all the way down to kindergarten, little three and four year old kids told to keep that special safe distance from each other. Or, at least, stay back from the bigger kids coming into school, leaving at the end of the day, sitting on the bus.
We don’t want you to get sick. Instilling a fear of being near other people, even other little kids like themselves is an extremely risky lesson. Best friends, but with parents who have been – who knows where?- now kept at arm’s length and a lot further.
With all the warnings and restrictions, all the “for God’s sake, wear your mask, keep your distance” – scare the kids- when hair dressers and, then, manicurists were allowed to open shop this summer, I was furious that the Santa Claus parade, not meant to run until November, was cancelled.
Since then, recently, sources at the Town have whispered that Santa will make an appearance – somehow – this year, as always. Well, not as always, no sitting shyly on his lap sharing wishes. Santa will have to cope but only as long as he is not merely virtual but a flesh-on-the-spot Santa for all to see and call to, wave and see him, really, waving back.
Not that long ago, pre-bubbles, scientists, psychologists, doctors, teachers, were urging parents and guardians to restrict young children, especially those under five years old, to seriously curtail how much time they spend online. In the early years of our lives, we tend to take what we see as real. Virtual is not real – it’s a fantom without substance or even truth. Over exposure to computer activity has been shown to detrimentally influence the mood and temperament of young children.
Now in this era of the bubble, are we ignoring completely the wisdom of so many learned folk and planting our youngest, even, before that confounded screen, ruining their eyes and perception, as we instruct them that to scroll is to learn? Are parents remembering that this is a state of emergency, not a happy new way to live a life and keeping a social distance between their children and the dread pit of the internet, the potentially destructive influence of doing everything on screen?
Our caution is well founded, proven by the low numbers we’re maintaining, generally, except for party-time rebellions: people fed up with the restrictions, desperately wanting to have fun, hug, laugh into each other’s faces. Until the numbers go up again and we are reminded with what we’re dealing.
Yes, caution is paramount and the chaos it imposes on going back to school has everyone baffled, no matter how much money is thrown at it. The theatres are closed because it is too hard to figure out the logistics of social distance seating, and still cover the cost of productions. So, back to school is the same problem and the cost is a big part of the discussion, like the risks and the mental health of the youngsters around whom the whole issue is centred.
So many opinions; so many solutions, some half-baked, as parents are crazy with worry and wanting to protect their children and themselves. Yet, they are equally anxious to return their children to some kind of normal, while they go back to work and bring in some money to help stop the government bleeding, which will have to be moped up somehow, some day.
Into all this, it needs to be said that the worst solution is to keep students learning primarily on line – particularly younger children and I mean kids up to ten. Society was addicted to this form of connection long before this current pandemic arrived on the scene. With the intense negativity that is the backbone of the internet and its pervasive misconception of reality, we really must protect the tender mental health of our children very carefully during this horrible time.
Teenagers as well, so vulnerable to addiction, so curious about darkness, must be given the chance to learn in a real and healthy space, not the too easy nebulous land of online. This must be the first concern.
We cannot let Covid-19 create a new kind of people.