Fielder's Choice

My high school senior is hurting. She only shows it occasionally on the outside, but I know that on the inside, it's continuous.

Her prom was scheduled for April 4. She has her dress, in waiting. As of now, the prom has only been postponed. Will it be cancelled?

She is one of the Pilgrimage queens, excited about wearing her vintage dress and welcoming visitors to a hometown she loves. It was postponed.

Her graduation ceremony is May 11. Will it take place then? Will it be postponed? Will it even happen?

She had wanted to cap a high school sports career filled with soccer, basketball, cheerleading and track by competing in tennis for the first time this spring. Will any games be rescheduled?

The last few weeks she was supposed to be seeing her classmates each day, sharing smiles, laughs and hugs. They were supposed to be hanging out together ­ valuable time as their school days draw to a close.

Her high school friends were supposed to be piling into our house after school or before events, as they always do. I never knew how many cars might be in my driveway when I got home from work.

I was supposed to be hearing the girls giggling and talking about boys and other things. Pam was supposed to be cooking for them. The table was always filled with snacks. They all know where to find the key to the door. It's their house, too.

Erin was supposed to spending important end-of-the-year time with her teachers, in the classroom, capping her 12--plus years of educational instruction at Marshall Academy the way it should be capped. Pam and I have never really had to push the studying and the good grades. She's pushed herself ­ sometimes too hard.

And her teachers are not just teachers. They're examples. They're leaders, people she looks up to. She doesn't dread seeing them each day. She loves them. They're teaching her. They're helping her ­ not just in English and math but in life, giving her valuable advice as college and then the "real world" rapidly approach.

She's started distance learning from home. It's great, but it's not the same.

She was excited when she got to see some of her classmates during a session with one of her teachers via Zoom.

She's been sleeping late and then hanging out at the dining room table, computer in front of her, writing papers and completing other school assignments.

In her spare time, she and her mom play board games or work on one of those monster jigsaw puzzles.

She takes our dog Lady on long walks up the street. Lady is loving having her home all day.

She keeps up with friends through texting, phone calls and social media. But that's not enough to keep her going.

She wants interaction with her friends at her high school.

She wants the actual classroom. She wants to be around her teachers, to see them and visit with them in person.

She wants to dance at the prom.

She wants to walk across that stage and get her diploma, a reward for lots of hard work.

The days of late March and April were supposed to be the best times of her life.

They're not.