A HIGHER LOVE
Janine Mendes-Franco
There’s no doubt that during this pandemic, many of us have performed more acts of selflessness that we might have normally, giving time, resources and money to others in need. Social distancing has made us appreciate our friends and fam even more, and perhaps given us the opportunity to know them better, since gatherings have become smaller.
We’ve even realised how important self-love is—taking time to recharge our own batteries is not a luxury; it’s a necessity—so we’ve been glad to see so many of you making space for facials and other treatments that relax you and bring you back to yourself.
So yes—love requires time, generosity, listening, acts of service and knowing when to take a time-out—but higher love, which ripples outward from our immediate bubbles to the wider community, also requires advocacy.
Standing up for the greater good is one of the strongest acts of love, as we become allies for those who can’t always advocate for themselves. Serpentine Dermatology’s Dr. Tonya Abraham-Ali recently spoke out on behalf of our nation’s school-aged children, with a Letter to the Editor pressing for the return to physical school in order to ensure their well being:
“Only a life lived for others is a life worth living.”
This quotation from Albert Einstein and sealed by the Covid-19 pandemic sums up my thoughts as a physician, wife, mother and citizen.
We are the last, the very last country in the world to not open physical schools for all our children. Uganda recently received international praise for being able to finally give back to their children their fundamental right to education, to a future not trapped behind a screen, but one screaming with excitement and opportunity for the days ahead. It may not be without challenges, but we cannot get to where we want to in life without taking chances.
It is abundantly clear that online education is failing schoolchildren.
In international studies, 74 per cent of teachers and school staff agreed that schools being closed to most pupils throughout lockdown has harmed young people’s mental health.
The statistics overwhelmingly show this pandemic has magnified inequities. Pupils who didn’t feel like part of a school community have become even more disengaged during distance learning; pupils who were less experienced with digital platforms have had difficulty keeping up with remote learning, and this has led to an increase in school dropouts, teenage pregnancy, drug and substance abuse, mental health problems and suicide amongst our youth.
Schools and colleges provide stability, routine and consistency, protective factors for young people’s mental health and, notably, a connection to trusted adults such as teachers and pastoral support.
I plead with my fellow Trinbagonians to be brave, not live in fear, trust what other nations are doing successfully, and reopen schools safely.
Our children deserve a right to education: one they enjoy, one that includes their friends and the familiar faces of their home away from home.
I know I take a risk each day I walk into my clinic, but I am guided by the promise I made the day I graduated as a doctor—to help those in need. My team works hard at maintaining safety protocols so that over the last two years, after more than 13,000 persons have walked through our doors, I’m confident in saying no one has contracted Covid-19 from my office.
The same theory goes for the education of children. They deserve the right to learn. Teaching, like medicine, is a calling, and in no way do I cry down the efforts of teachers in the last two years. I realise how difficult it is to engage children on a screen, especially after more than 600 DAYS!
The Government must act before we lose a generation of children to failed education and, in doing so, compromise T&T’s future.
As doctors, we made oaths to help the sick, and as teachers, I believe you too must be honest with yourselves and take those same risks, all the while following international safety protocols which have been proven to work.
We as a population need to trust our healthcare professionals when they stress the importance of getting vaccinated, and how this very simple and safe measure ultimately can save so many lives. It is our social responsibility, please do not hesitate.
Let’s get our children back where they belong: in school. Whether it’s at desks in their classrooms, under tents in the playgrounds, or sitting under mango trees! We have the resources, so let’s do all we can to make in-person learning happen, face-to-face with the teachers who will forever help them forge their way through life with lessons only you can teach them!
The opposite of love isn’t hate. It’s indifference. Where does your heart lie? What are you passionate about? Get out there and do something about it! You only need to start with love.
