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PARENTING
Parents Need A Closer Village
I was forced to find mine through feet of snow
The emergency text notice told us to pick up our kids within the hour.
Alarmed, I headed out in just a few minutes after sending my own staff home and locking up the office. The snow pummeled our southern roads more quickly than I’d ever seen. I drove the five small town miles at a crawl; white sheets clung to desperate windshield wipers and wide-eyed parents clenched steering wheels.
I didn’t know that day would become known as Snowpocalypse 2014. I didn’t know that the unexpected blizzard would force me and my two-year-old to learn a powerful lesson through it — literally.
The toddlers were bundled right by the door so staff could place them in cars as quickly as possible. I called my partner on a business trip in another state. He might not be able to make his flight back. My stomach churned.
By the time we arrived home — another few miles and another hour of toddler car entertainment later — I knew this was more than nerves. I set up a secure play area so I could writhe on the couch. Whatever bug got me was acting as fast as the precipitation against the window. I stretched a sheet over the couch and kept a wastebasket in my arms.
