On Saturday, March 14, City of Lakes Waldorf School made the decision to close all programs beginning Monday, March 16 through Friday, April 3. Our administrative director, Marti Stewart, shared these poignant words with our parents and staff, which we now offer to our extended community here.
“I want to acknowledge the gravity of this moment for all of us; we are living in a time that is marked by uncertainty. The seriousness of our every day responsibility has taken on an added weight. As parents and educators, we are faced with the question of how to best serve the children and young people in our care. How do we keep them healthy and safe—and how do we demonstrate what it means to be courageous in the face of fear, positive in the face of possible calamity and despair, and calm in the face of so many causes for concern?
The foundations of Waldorf education suggest that we are all here now for a reason—that we are made for this time. To be made for this time means to summon our collective courage and to believe in the probability of good. It means paying attention, being awake and taking action, while cultivating positivity and inner calm. To meet the challenges of the present we need to acknowledge our profound interdependence and rely on one another for support as a community. We need to ask ourselves how we can exemplify the qualities that we know our children will need as they grow up and step out into the world as it is: perfect, unimaginable, frightening, amazing, tragic, unjust, wonderful, exciting and beautiful.
I hope that each of you is able to find time for centering, rest and renewal—and to feel gratitude for what is beautiful, good and true—as we rise to the collective tasks before us.”