Three bright spots

in a dark week

On Tuesday I texted Cat, Are we in constitutional crisis?

Yup, she replied.

Later I asked a historian friend, “So, is this constitutional crisis?”

Oh yes, he said.

On Tuesday night, Cat and I cried at dinner. Maybe you cried too, or yelled, or had a hard week, like some other members of our family, that was hard beyond politics but compounded by politics, made worse by the fact that we are living in not only a constitutional crisis but a crisis of care. Where the most vulnerable people are not only not protected but treated as expendable.

But here are three bright moments from this week that I am holding on to:

1. Friday night, we got this letter from Dr. Anthony Jackson, our excellent school superintendent. Dr. Jackson writes, “In Chatham County Schools, we are committed to ensuring that every child is safe, supported, and given every opportunity to learn and thrive—regardless of background, circumstance, or any factor beyond their control. We recognize that recent national conversations and policy changes may cause uncertainty for some families. Please know this: Our commitment to our students has not changed. Our schools will always be places of safety, belonging, and opportunity.” You can read the complete letter here.

2. Bea started working with student council this week, an opportunity made possible by her wonderful fifth grade teacher, and she is loving the experience of working in an organized position of leadership and service. Here’s what she says about it:

Student council is made up of seven fifth graders. I’m the president; three of my classmates are secretary, vice president, and class representative, and from the other class there’s a treasurer and two class representatives. We don’t just represent the fifth grade. We represent the whole school. Our goal is to make the school a better place, make the school a stronger community, and make sure everyone feels safe. I feel really excited by the student council and the opportunity to do real work for the school.

One of the first things we did is to start a program our advisor calls “rent a model fifth grader” program. It’s for teachers: in the K-1 and 2-3 hallways, we put a box in each teacher workroom with slips of paper and pencils and explained that teachers can write down anything we can do to help them. For example, three of us will be peer buddies for K-1 students. We might read to them or help them with their work.

For our next project, we are doing a service project for Turtle Pants Farm, a rescue group that helps animals (all kinds) that have been abandoned. We’re collecting food and supplies.

We’re also putting suggestion boxes in every classroom so that all kids can anonymously suggest things they’d like to see happen at school. Harriet already had a great suggestion about making cards for kids when they’re out sick.

3. Chatham County held our district spelling bee this week, and Bea won! We were so proud of her, but also of all the other students, and our incredible school and district staff who organized the event and made every child who participated feel supported and celebrated. The care taken, the patience (the words were really hard!), the fact that just about everyone in the audience stayed to the very end (they went fifteen rounds, or almost two hours) made me really grateful to live in this community and to be a part of our public schools.

Here is Bea with her medal, trophy, and certificate:

Here are her lucky Margaret Atwood socks:

Her winning word was cacophonous.

North Carolinians, read this short piece by Kate Riga about our senator, Thom Tillis, who has apparently been ignoring our many phone calls (but let’s keep making them). Tillis told Riga and other reporters, “I do what I believe satisfies my objectives as U.S. senator and I let the electorate play out on its own.” Even this can be a bright spot if you think about how close 2026 is, and how great it will feel to vote this craven politican out of office.

Frog Troublers, did your week have some bright spots? Did your school district send a letter like the one Dr. Jackson sent? We hope so.