My granddaughter, Hannah is now in 2nd grade. She went to school this morning for the first time since her school closed in 2020 due to the pandemic. My grandson, Beau, starts pre-school in a few weeks. It is an exciting time that is also filled with times of anxiety and fear. Not an easy time for their parents either. She was home-schooled last year and thank goodness her mom had the nerve - she is not a school teacher. She is a mother who will go to great lengths to be sure her children are safe and have what they need. Of course, she and my son self-quarantined as most of us did. This morning was the first time Hannah had seen children in a group (all masked of course) in almost 18 months. They sent me a video & she was smiling & excited. She waved from the steps of the school & then she froze. Her teacher knew a lot about her already because Hannah's mom had emailed with her. She is shy and sensitive & "new" is hard for her...really hard.

Her mom...