As I sit down to send this, it feels like I’m watching a terrible movie. New York City has just shut down its schools until April 20th, our borders are slowly but surely starting to close, and the grocery stores are slowly emptying out. While day one of quarantine was light and fun, it starts to get old. Fast.

These are uncertain times, and I certainly haven’t lived through anything like this in my lifetime. Each day feels exponentially worse than the last, and we can also look forward and know that the worst is yet to come. They feel particularly unnerving for me, knowing that I don’t quite trust the leadership of this country and my home.

At the same time, while there has not yet been an outbreak in Zambia, we are planning, preparing, and sensitizing our communities, students, and parents for what is to come. In some ways, Zambia is far ahead of where the U.S. came into this – already quarantining visitors, conducting health checks, and communicating frequently with the public. But we have a long road ahead of us. In the coming days, the team will be working closely to identify the best path forward for our students and communities, and ensuring that we keep their health at the forefront of our minds.

I’m reminded of one of my favorite quotes, from a President John F. Kennedy –

When written in Chinese, the word 'crisis' is composed of two characters. One represents danger and the other represents opportunity.

During this time of social distancing, let’s take this opportunity to take care of each other. Truly take care of each other. While we can’t meet a friend for dinner, we can FaceTime an old classmate and make sure that they are safe. While we can’t visit a museum, take advantage of the virtual tours being offered by museums overseas to visit somewhere you’d never been before (https://www.travelandleisure.com/attractions/museums-galleries/museums-with-virtual-tours). While we can’t go to school, we can follow Khan Academy’s online learning schedule (or a plethora of other resources that are currently free!). And we can be thankful that all of these options exist unlike any other decade in history.

I have been keeping all of the victims of this virus in my thoughts, and holding a special gratitude for first responders, doctors, nurses, scientists, educators, grocery store clerks, food delivery trucks, and others that are doing their best to keep our world safe right now. This evening, I appreciate each and every one of you. We will get through this. Let us each respect one another, love one another, and look out for one another during this time.

- Reshma

The word crisis is comprised of two characters...