This has been a rough year. And it is times like this that I wonder what Woodie would say if he could see us all right now. And no one has an answer but Woodie himself. But I think Woodie would be proud of us for putting people’s safety over our season no matter how much it hurts. And I think he would be proud of every one of us who has reached out to others who have been affected just as badly as we have. And for those of you who are hurting. for those who feel like there is no hope left, and like the world is falling apart beneath our feet, I think he would want you, yes you, to live a good life. So I challenge all of you, to reach out to others, spend time together, and continue to make Woodie proud.
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Yes, YOU.
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Thank you for getting it.
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Love you mom <3
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…
This season was a success.
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Spend time together - But a minimum of 6 feet apart
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I was writing this as a separate topic, but your topic gives my words a perfect frame. Thank you.
This season was my return to FRC after ten years since mentoring the Lehman Lionics (FRC1230) in the Bronx, NY, during the Breakaway season. My world has changed a lot since then. I teach engineering and computer science at an international school in Vietnam. My students have participated in VEX robotics now for three years and earned a spot at VEX Worlds this year by winning the first tournament in Vietnam hosted by our school. I have worked this season with Wayne Penn, one of my favorite people, to join my students with students in New York City and New Hampshire to collaboratively build an FRC robot. We were planning to all meet in person for the first time at the Hawaii regional.
Many stories and posts over the past couple of weeks have started this way. A statement of plans once made. Excitement for what could be.
We are in week six of our school campus, along with most schools in Vietnam, being closed because of measures taken to limit the spread of coronavirus and the COVID-19 disease. This has been our reality, along with schools in China, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, for a number of weeks. Our sports tournaments, arts festivals, and yes, all of our robotics trips have been cancelled one by one over the past six weeks. Students are learning from home, often not being permitted to leave their homes. Teachers have been doing their best to continue creating meaningful learning experiences and maintain a sense of community while students are scattered away from the school gates. Our seniors are understandably upset about their final year of high school being interrupted.
Though we have been through six weeks of this uncertain reality here, the US and other countries are just beginning to wrestle with issues of cancellations and closures. My friends back home are asking questions about what to do and how to feel. Many posts here on CD are giving advice on what teams should do and what FIRST should do. In retrospect, some things have helped me understand my own process of dealing with what is happening around the world today.
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People need space and time to mourn the loss of what was to be. We need the space to talk about our anger and to express denial of whether it is really happening. Early on, I remember feeling frustration with opportunities being taken away from my students. I second guessed the decisions that others were making and felt like I had leverage to ask for something else in return. I felt better acknowledging these feelings and giving them a name. This was grief, pure and simple. I was allowed to feel sadness for what I had lost. That was part of my process of making sense of it. It is normal to be upset about losing something meaningful to you.
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Looking on the bright side and for being constructive is important, but it is not always compatible with the timeline of grief. It goes without saying that there are many things for which we should be thankful. Getting to drive a robot into the color wheel or see an autonomous program win a match are very different life experiences from having enough food to eat or a family that loves you. Someone grieving a loss may not be ready to be told how lucky they are. Leave time and space for someone not to be ready for that yet. Someone might just want to complain. If that is you, it might help to tell the person you are talking to that you don’t want answers, just an open ear.
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Everyone is in a different place in the process of dealing with this situation, and that place can change with time. Everybody is struggling with something. Someone that was being brave yesterday is allowed to feel afraid today. It is completely fine to have both good days and bad days. Be patient with others and understand that the process of managing these emotions is not a straight line.
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If you see someone struggling, reach out to them. Be willing to listen without giving advice. If you see a change in the personality of someone you care about, talk to them about it. Rather than telling someone why what they are feeling is wrong, share back what you are hearing to see if you understood them.
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It is ok to ask for help if you are struggling. This is a rough situation that is new to all of us. You don’t need to go through it alone, and you are not the only person feeling this way. We need each other’s company more than ever. Don’t hesitate to ask a doctor for help managing both your mental and physical health during this challenging time.
The FIRST community has been hit hard with the announcement of the cancellation of regionals and the championships yesterday. This is a raw wound. The uncertainty won’t end with this news. Yes we will be ok. But this is not easy, and it hurts right now.
We are a resilient community and can take good care of each other. There will be so many good ideas for how to pick up a bunch of the pieces of this season and build something amazing out of it for the future. Be patient. Be kind. And when you are ready, do as the original post suggested, and think what Woodie would do next.
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I came here after searching for a thread of “what should mentors do in a time like this?”. I’ve never had to deal with something like this before
The words I have seen so far are so good, and so encouraging. Thank you!
Woodie, had he not passed away, would have been a person at risk. He would have been an older person either ill or recovering from illness.
How many other people in Woodie’s circumstances might be saved from illness and potential death because of cancellations and postponements?
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We have been given a new game to play.
As with all games, there are a variety of ways to gain points and win the game.
Community support - both geographically and through FIRST associations (i.e. other teams) are part of the equation.
Learning about viral spread mechanisms and how to defeat them is part of the equation.
Bonus: what can FIRST teams organizations contribute to limiting spread. What new idea is out there that can be applied to establish a barrier?
Learning about diagnostics for the virus - what are the tell-tale signs?
Can someone on a FIRST team come up with an idea that doesn’t just slow down the spread of the virus, but actually halts the spread of the virus? If so, there is my version of an Einstein champion!!
We have a new game to play!
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Team 4926 is going to have one heck of a pie day tomorrow! (Our gathering will be under the mandated state limit of attendees…)
Thank you for sharing. I can’t imagine how heartbreaking it must be that far ahead of the curve, but unfortunately I expect we will find out very soon. I was definitely hit very hard by the news, and have been so extrodanally lucky to have a group of people from a wide variety of teams looking out for me; whether it be the tradgdy of Woodies loss or the end of the season, these people have been here for me, and I hope we can all be here for eachother. It’s the right thing to do and what Woodie would have wanted
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