Should we return to normalcy for the sake of the children?

During the Bubonic Plagues it has been said that an English Nursery Rhyme was created:

Ring around the rosie
A pocket full of posies
A-tisha A-tisha
We all fall down

That is the way that I learned it as a child.

The meaning was said to be that the ring around the rosie referred to the rosy rash of the Plague. The posies were carried by people for protection. The A-tisha, a coughing sound, was a fatal symptom which resulted in "falling down."

Although folklore scholars dismiss this idea, thinking about it makes one wonder just what did children think about the Great Plague which killed off over several waves half of the people of England and many other places. I tend to refer to England because every one of my known relatives going back even as far as 16 generations was born in England except for myself, my mother, her father and his mother. My father was born in England and all of his relatives as far as I can determine were also born there and it appears his furtherest back relative was a Robert Blake born near Andover, Hampshire likely in the 1440s to 1460s (with the widespread range created because he was quite elderly when he left his will in 1521 which could mean that he was 60 to 80 or perhaps even older). No way of telling that yet. Mind you the occupation of England only dates from the end of the Last Glacial Maximum which occurred roughly 15,000 years ago and it would have taken a while to come out of the Ice Age Refuges and cross the European continent to the present day British Isles.

So what do children think of all of this? would they be happier just going to school? As it turns out it isn't just the children that we need to think about. There are the teachers, the cleaners, the administrators and the school bus drivers who must be given consideration as well. These adults may or may not be in a much more vulnerable group.

But we need to be cautious that we do not imprint on their minds the tragedy unfolding in front of us. They need to understand the cause and effect though in order to make their enforced self-isolation have meaning for them. They are affording protection to those who are vulnerable.

I have not been particularly supportive in many of the things that Premier Ford had done since he was elected but he has done a complete change over in my opinion. He is doing a great job of handling this crisis both as a leader, an innovator and worker. He is there every day with ideas and thoughts for those who are suffering. He has not hesitated for one moment to roll up his sleeves and put himself to physical work if that was needed. He has proven himself to be a "hero" that the children of Ontario can look up to and admire. I will certainly always give him credit for helping Ontario to move forward in this crisis in a positive way. He has not made any weird claims about drugs or treatments but has left that to the medical profession. He now understands medicine a whole lot better. Those who have worked in medicine whether doctor, nurse, clerk, cleaner all know that hospitals exist just in case. They have to be maintained and supplied just in case. This was the "in case" that happened. Pandemics are rare these days; much commoner in the days of the Bubonic Plague. But we always need to be somewhat ready for a breakout of disease.

The title "Should we return to normalcy for the sake of the children" and I would say the answer is no. Children can weather many crises and will likely in their lives. The worst is still ahead in some ways. The earth is suffering from our abuse; the abuse of 200 years of industrialization. We need to take stock of what really is important in my humble opinion. Fresh air has to be a priority; animals likely prefer fresh air and our lungs cry out for it. Especially the case if you are an asthmatic. More and more people are asthmatic; some of us have never smoked but the world has smoked for us and weakened our lungs. We need to progress and there is an opportunity here to clean up the world so that it is truly a better place in which to live and stop people from polluting the world.