Quarantined

Last Friday I was cold. It was a cold that I could not get over. I snuggled under blankets, drank hot cocoa…but I was still cold. Then I woke up Saturday morning with an extremely sore throat where I could barely swallow and I knew why I had been cold the day before…I was sick with a cold.  Now, please note that I also live in Western Washington. You know…the current epicenter of the Coronavirus outbreak. So, getting a cold during this time makes people think you’ve got the Coronavirus too. Ugh. It’s a bad time to have a normal cold!  Therefore, I did something I normally never do, which is to stay home.

Now, if you know me, you will know that I normally would not take sick leave (especially for 4.5 days – almost an entire week!) to stay home nursing a bad cold. I normally would’ve sucked it up, taken cold medicine and ibuprofen, and come to school. I would’ve forged forward to do my principal duties. However, I would’ve been spreading my germs the entire time. I would’ve most likely made my co-workers and students sick as well (even though I practice good hand-washing and I cover my coughs and sneezes).  I would’ve told myself that I was needed and that the school couldn’t run without me. I was wrong.

You see, when we put structures in place and we have the right people, the building will operate just fine without us. While I’ve still been doing what I can via working from home, my building and staff are doing just fine! Now of course, being who I am, it also makes me a little sad. I wonder “am I needed?” But, then I receive emails from staff telling me they miss me and hope I’m resting and getting better. I also receive emails saying “thank you for modeling to not come into work sick”.  This helps me to realize that I have set a good example for my staff.  I’m the one always telling my staff if they are sick “rest, take the day off…we’ll be fine!” or if their family or children are sick “take care of them…family first…we’ve got things covered here!” And you know what, I believe it for them. I truly want my staff to take care of themselves and their families first. But, for some reason until now, I have not extended myself the same courtesy.

As I sit at home writing this on day 4.5 of being home (and getting a little stir crazy and probably loopy!), that if I would’ve trudged through this week like normal, I wouldn’t be getting better. I’d be getting sicker. This has been a pattern I’ve been through many times in my 6 years as a principal. Then what happens is after about 3 weeks of being dog sick I go to the doctor and usually have bronchitis. Well, this time, I’m taking care of myself. I’m sleeping long hours, taking naps, watching movies and shows, doing a puzzle, reading…and most importantly, not exposing others to my germs! And, I feel that by the time Monday comes, I’ll be ready to go back to work. This has been a good lesson for me to learn! And, while my school survived just fine without me for this week, I’m hoping they still need me and my positive energy 🙂

Lesson learned: Take care of yourself first. You cannot take care of others if you are unwell. And, don’t spread your cooties!

~Stephanie – The Positive Principal

P.S. Picture is of the puzzle I started this week!