Friday, April 24, 2020 3Brooklin Town Crier By Regional Councillor - Rhonda Mulcahy The Good, The Bad and the Snake Oil of Coronavirus In many ways, being a councillor isn't entirely different from being a newspaper lady. With my pulse on the community, I hear all. However, I have to temper my opinion. The pandemic has brought out people's good, bad and ugly. But it's also dragged out my personal coping mechanism on dark days: sarcasm. So bear with me. First, I can state that the GOOD is far greater than merely good. Many have stepped up in such positive and meaningful ways, including those among the wealthiest who have stepped up to support those in need such as the food bank or health care workers. I cannot thank you enough for your compassion and care for one another. Keep up the good work. A special shout out to our Care-mongers who serve our community with the spirit of true champions. Then there's the BAD; we know who they are. These are the people ignoring the rules and only looking out for themselves. They're the ones driving crazy fast through residential streets, hosting get togethers or teeing off at the high school field as if it's their private driving range. They're rude and disrespectful. Police and by-law will handle them. But the ugliest are the ones willing to risk other peoples' well-being in support of their bottom line. They're the ones who know they're able to still put food on the table and exit this situation okay. They're also the ones who believe this whole thing is overblown and are pressuring us to "open it back up" soon. Shame on you. Then there are the snake oil peddlers. They claim that vitamin supplements or essential oils will save us all from the Coronavirus, that we don't need a vaccine and we should just embrace this virus. These "alternative" medicine theories leave me baffled. When you hear of 30-year old Olympic swimmers being brought to their knees by this virus, you have to start listening to legitimate medical personnel. No amount of vitamin C or lavender oil is going to clear the fluid from your lungs, no matter how much you believe in Gwyneth Paltrow and her Goop. On that note, if you watch her Netflix show "Goop" and take it seriously, we aren't likely to agree on much. Like Paltrow, there are those who want to sell you their product in order to save you from Coronavirus. Unless it's a vaccine approved by our health experts, then it's snake oil and those people are pretty ugly, in my view. In the meantime, I will focus my energy on the people I can help and who are stepping up to help. I'm happy to report that most are participating in social distancing and staying home as much as they can. This is going to take time. We are all feeling it and want it to end. But if we TRULY care for one another, we will do what is being asked of us and stay home. Be safe! Remote Schooling Our Brooklin Kids By Leanne Brown We're finishing up week two of remote schooling. The overall verdict? Meh. First, getting motivated to do the work is a challenge. Not just for my daughter but also for me. I've realized I need to dedicate time in my day to be a teacher. While the assignments are easy enough, it's more the focus that needs to be encouraged. When you have two parents working at home, finding the time to sit down and explain school assignments is a challenge. Also, when your child doesn't want to do work in favour of playing Minecraft, I find myself putting off starting the school- work so as not to have a fight. If I don't have a two-hour window between meetings, I just wait. Doing schoolwork amidst conference calls is distracting. The background noise of people talking, seemingly to themselves, makes it hard for young minds to focus. Plus, it's hard to answer school questions when you're on a call. Of course, we aren't alone. It's not unusual to hear little voices in the background on calls. Some are asking for snacks; sometimes siblings are fighting, or in my case, a TikTok video is being produced. I've been on calls where we are all suddenly serenaded with Elsa singing "Let it Go" or SpongeBob chime in when the TV is turned on. That said, teachers are doing their best and I am so impressed with their dedication. My daughter's teacher is online throughout the day to answer questions and give guidance and encouragement. She responds almost instantly and leaves comments to praise their hard work. Teachers have become so creative with assignments. This week my daughter had to recreate a famous work of art using whatever she could find in the house. This turned out to be great fun. She ravaged my closet and the linen closet to gather materials and got quite creative. Her curiosity was sparked as she studied her painting of choice and meticulously recreated every detail. The result was something that will become a keepsake. My husband and I are using "divide and conquer" for teaching duties based on our strengths. I'm helping with writing and social studies; he's the math and phys ed. teacher. With teacher duties divided, our daughter gets to spend one-on-one time with each of us during the day. We've got a routine going. I'm up at 6:30 to work before the network gets busy and the connection slows down. At 10 am, we do school until noon. Then we all break for lunch together and go for a walk before my husband and I get back to work. Afternoons are for our daughter as she spends time with her cousin who lives with us. She works on her hockey skills, reads, chats online with friends and builds LEGO until dinner. After dinner is family time… movies, games and snuggles. Yes, homeschooling and working full time are a challenge. But we'll get through it. I now value what our teachers provide and have a new appreciation for their work.