We're dealing with a coronavirus resurgence in Vietnam that has put us back on limited lockdown with masks required. There are also limits on the number of customers in the few coffee shops that are open. Many "nonessential" businesses, such as nail salons and barber shops, have been re-shuttered. Some folks work around the restrictions because they need money for groceries.
We have a couple of active cases in Bien Hoa -- a doctor and his wife who went to Da Nang. Road blocks are set up to detour traffic around their neighborhood, which happens to be across the street from the supermarket where I shop. The detour added to my taxi fare on Saturday, but no big deal. Safety first.
Joanna's school closed last week for two days -- Monday and Tuesday -- and we kept her out the rest of the week. She returned to school this week, but I limited her to half-days. Nine and a half hours a day for a 4-year-old seems a little extreme to me. During time away from school, I work with Joanna on bike riding (with training wheels), and provide academic instruction in the afternoons -- I continue to read to her and I have her write letters and words using dot to dot. We draw cartoons on our whiteboard that are based on the animated BabyTV show "Beep Beep," which is about the misadventures of two trucks and a "road," who are friends. Joanna loves the "Beep Beep" work, but she won't do something unless she is comfortable and confident in what she's doing. She slyly watches and listens. She's more capable than she lets on, and sometimes thinks it's funny to goof up, especially on the bike. With the language barrier at school, even though it's "bilingual," English-speaking Joanna can run into difficulties. She seems very bright to me, but she doesn't like taking any orders from anybody, and a language issue only adds to her frustration. Anyway, not all of the students have returned to class yet, so things are low-keyed. And that seems better suited for Joanna. Her clever sense of humor remains intact throughout all this; she recites the planets quite often and always points to my stomach and laughs when she says "Jupiter."
* * *
Low-keyed is perhaps the best way to describe our son Elijah. He's a little older than 3 months and doesn't complain about much of anything except when mom's milk isn't at the ready. He loves company, and when's he's whining ever so slightly he'll stop whining instantly when I lay down next to him and baby babble. I read that if you copy the sounds a baby makes, the baby will make more sounds. This technique has worked like a charm for Elijah. He constantly baby babbles whenever he sees dad, which is all the time. We have funny little conversations about who knows what, but we both enjoy it. He'll roll from stomach to back -- but not vice versa -- especially when he's angry. Otherwise, this laid-back boy will chill on his back or stomach, examining his right fist. My wife Phuong is mostly recovered from the effects of giving birth, but she battles fatigue a little. So do I, but no doubt age, lack of exercise, and helping my wife deal with two very young children are big factors. I can't really exercise because of back issues. I know I'm old because I count my 7-minute walk to school with Joanna as a "workout." Sometimes that walk will take 20 minutes -- I'm not sure Joanna is 100 percent committed to school, and she loves spotting birds, butterflies, bees and snails on the way to school. She's got a decent eye and showed me the butterfly and snail pictured on the right.
* * *
We're working toward getting our son a passport, which would put us closer to coming to the U.S. Coronavirus has added hurdles to our immigration efforts, but no worries. no hurries. Still, we'd like to see changes in our country that would make the situation safer for my children and more welcoming for my Vietnamese wife. I like Kamala Harris as Joe Biden's VP pick. She's well-spoken and tells it like it is. Honesty and a straightforward approach to governing are necessary steps toward making America respected for its leadership and righteousness -- again. With so many negatives facing the U.S. -- the lack of any decisive action during the pandemic; racism; birther BS; lack of concern about climate change; mail-in voting misinformation -- voting this November is a must, not an option. I'll mail-in my vote from Bien Hoa. That's my right.
No comments:
Post a Comment