By Nalini Joseph

“Nalini, India has collapsed,” my cousin who lives in Calcutta, India, wrote on a WhatsApp message just a few days ago. 

My heart is heavy as I continue to receive more and more sad news from family and friends about the dire conditions in India as COVID-19 continues to ravage the country. My life in America is a fantastical dream to the millions of Indians who are living through the pandemic, mentally and physically struggling to survive this unimaginable nightmare. Each day I thank God for my life in Salisbury — a life that is quite different from a year ago. I rarely turn back to go to my car if I’ve forgotten my mask. I can finally look at price tags on merchandise with glasses that don’t fog up. I walk in and out of buildings with a pep in my step, with a greater sense of confidence. 

I can look forward to a summer for my 11-year-old that includes trips to Dairy Queen, fun at the pool and at the various camps that are offered this year. In fact, my only big fear is that I will all too quickly forget about the travails that continue for so many around the globe. I eagerly put the memories of last summer’s hardships in my back pocket — the fear of traveling to see relatives, trying to arrange my work schedule and childcare because so many children’s activities and summer camps came to a screeching halt. 

For many parents, this summer will provide us with the much-needed normalcy and routine for our children and families. We can rejoice in the warmer weather and in the sharing of food and laughter with friends and loved ones. There is a big “however” in all of this: let’s not forget the lessons that we were forced to learn just a year ago. 

There were lessons in gratefulness for church and family, gratefulness for time to stop and rest and for the simple pleasures of life: walking in the neighborhood, spending time at home cooking or reading books that have been on our reading list for years. Remember how difficult it was for us to adjust to the new pandemic normal? Many of us had to adjust to working at home or maybe not working at all. We had curfews and mandates to stay at home. As churches shut down, zooms and chat rooms opened up. We were glued to our TVs, watching the case and fatality numbers go up as people from New York fled to states such as North Carolina and Georgia.   

Let’s make sure that we prevent ourselves from dangerous over-correction this summer. Don’t let summer 2021 become a summer of frenzied fun and overindulgence.

I continue to remind myself about being intentional in all my thoughts and actions. This sense of intentionality is constantly warring with my tendency as an American and as a human being to partake of all the gluttony that is so readily available to me. 

Parents:  make a structured plan for your child’s summer that includes rest, relaxation, reading and studying. I think about the millions of children that have lost months of face-to-face teaching and education. Many parents have suffered through countless hours of online learning with their children. Anger, frustration and feelings of helplessness describe the condition of many parents who were not able to send their child to school during the pandemic. 

As we forge into summer and hopefully move into a “normal” new school year in the fall, resist the temptation to completely erase the anguish of the past year. Yes, allow for fun and time to daydream, but be cognizant of the gaps in learning that your child may have encountered during the pandemic. Take advantage of the many resources our community offers: Rowan-Salisbury Schools is providing summer school this year, and the Rowan Public Library is back to offering a great reading program for children of all ages. 

Day programs through the YMCA or Power Cross for school aged boys (www.powercross.org) focus on structure and academics. Use this summer of 2021 to recuperate some of what was lost in 2020.  

Nalini Joseph lives in Salisbury. Email her at nalinijones1@hotmail.com.