Postscript

The weatherman was right. We did have snow. Unfortunately we had freezing rain first, then sleet, then snow that left our streets coated with ice. Facebook posters and national news commentators made numerous comments about us being shut down over such a small amount of snow. We should have been prepared, they said. And how were we supposed to do that? First of all, we didn't know that Mother Nature would change not only her time schedule, but the temperature and type of precipitation.

Yes, we've had ice before - but the last time I remember anything even vaguely like ice to this extent was in 1982. We don't buy snowplows and stock chemicals for something that happens maybe every thirty-plus years or less. Snow tires or chains? Most of us in the South have never even seen them. Comments about lack of skill for driving in this? What are we supposed to do - construct an ice field somewhere and run us all through it as part of our driving exam? And as best I can tell, even the most experienced driver can get into a real mess when ice is involved.

And you laughed about some of our schools closing. Some didn't, and hundreds of children were stranded overnight and longer because the roads became impassable when the storm moved in much earlier and further north than expected. School buses couldn't run, parents couldn't reach the schools. As a former teacher I can say from personal experience, most people do not realize how seriously teachers take their jobs. Nor do those outside the field understand how much responsibility each teacher takes on every time she or he enters the classroom for the day. Teaching the content of the curriculum is but a small part of the job. To all those teachers who not only stayed with stranded students, some of whom had possibly never spent a night away from home, but made them feel safe and secure, I want to say "Thank you."