Due to these harsh conditions my school has cancelled classes tomorrow. You may think this sounds ridiculous (and in some respects, it is), but when you take a closer look at my students, it becomes a little more apparent why it is necessary to close the school tomorrow. Earlier this week when the weather was cold (but not nearly as cold as it will be tomorrow), I had 17 out of 45 students wearing short sleeved shirts in class. Additionally, some of these same students wore nothing more than a sweatshirt when they walked to school. Even students who wear appropriate indoor attire for winter still don't wear winter coats and hats when they walk to school. In fact, very few of my students are fully equipped (dressed) for winter conditions in this Cincinnati winter wonderland.
Believe me folks, I've heard the old timers when they put their two cents in. They remember the days when school was never cancelled (no matter how much snow fell). They remember the days when school was never cancelled (no matter HOW cold it got). They look at today's generation as spoiled, weak and soft. And once again, in some respects they're right. However, there are also things that have changed since "back in the day". For starters, there were far fewer cars on the roads years ago. It used to be most families had one car. Today everybody in the family has their own car. My family is the perfect example. Yes, we have four cars. That was not the norm years ago. Back in the day people could generally slip and slide their way to work without dodging thousands of other cars in really heavy traffic. Let's face it. Most dunderheads have no idea how to drive in the snow and endanger the lives of those of us who do. Another thing that has changed is the family unit in general. Many years ago dad went to work and mom stayed home to bundle up the kids for their frigid trek to school. Today (in many cases) there is no dad in the home and mom has to leave early for work. The kids are left alone to feed themselves and to get themselves ready for school. Let's face it... kids left on their own are not going to bundle up with a coat, hat, gloves and scarf to walk to school. And that's assuming they have coats, hats, gloves and scarves available to them.
Honestly, it's a different world we live in today. It's true school would not have been cancelled 30 years ago due to wind chills of -20. It's also true that 4 inches of snow wasn't enough to slow us down 30 years ago (let alone cancel school). Unfortunately we live in a society where people refuse to take care of themselves and we (as a school) have to take actions to protect them from themselves. Don't worry folks, I'm not turning into a Democrat :-) Believe me... if school were to be in session tomorrow, we would have students in short sleeves and sweatshirts walking to school and waiting outside our door to get into the warm building. By the way, the phrase "warm building" is completely relative. My classroom is not exactly toasty and cozy. These children wearing short sleeves in winter are sitting in my classroom complaining about being cold. Sad, but true.
In the end, I get an unexpected day off tomorrow. Thanks to children who refuse to wear appropriate winter clothing (or more specifically parents who don't provide sufficient clothing for their children), I will get a chance to sleep in and stay in my warm home tomorrow morning. And trust me, I will not waste this precious and unexpected gift.
Soli Deo Gloria!
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