On March 14, 2020, I left my classroom at Archbishop Curley High School thinking I’d be back in two weeks. This coronavirus was gaining international attention and the authorities thought it would be a good idea for us to quarantine for a short time to slow the spread of the virus. Three months later, I returned to my classroom to gather up my personal effects, wondering if and when I’d ever return.
Entering my classroom for the first time after three months was like stepping into a time capsule. Everything was frozen in time. Students’ names were on the board as they had signed up for research paper conferences we’d never have. I had scribbled some barely legible instructions on the board, emphasizing the fact that they needed to check in with me every day. Only a few of them did.
The thing that stuck out to me the most was the letterboard I used to hold in the hallway every day between classes to share the “word of the day.” Most of the words came from Merriam-Webster’s daily vocabulary email, but every once in awhile, I would choose something relevant to what was going on in my students’ world. When Kobe Bryant died in January 2020, the word was “lament.” On Ash Wednesday in February, we discussed “tithe.” And on Friday, March 13th of last year, our word was “fortitude.”
I had no framework of expectations for a pandemic, but I knew that it would take tremendous strength for our species to survive one. According to Merriam-Webster, fortitude means “strength of mind that enables a person to encounter danger or bear pain or adversity with courage.” When I presented that word to 101 confused and nervous young men, I assured them that our faith and our fortitude would see us through.
A year later, we have seen fortitude all around us. The health care providers who battle the disease head-on, the people who grow, sell, prepare, and deliver our food, the teachers, students, and parents who have adapted to virtual learning, the people who relentlessly clean the buildings we visit, the people who drop off our packages and letters, and the men and women whose vocation is to guide us in our faith are only a few of the essential workers who have displayed the strength of mind it takes to sustain a community during a time when everyone stayed home.
“Fortitude” was not merely the word of the day on March 13, 2020. It is the word that has defined a year. The Covid-19 journey isn’t over, but we have vaccines, schools are in session, and our world is gradually opening up. Fortitude has gotten us here and fortitude will carry us on, no matter what.
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