Megan Kotsko is a tutor. She and her husband, Jason, are co-founders of the Real St. Pete blog. Read our Q&A with Megan below.
How have the last five or six weeks changed you as a parent?
As a stay at home mom, my one-year-old son, Nathan, and I literally stay at home now. We don’t go on outings, run errands, or have visitors over. We spend a lot more time playing outside, looking at the birds and the planes and going for walks. On my husband’s days off, we spend more time together as a family since many of the to-dos have been put on hold. Some of those days appear extremely unproductive until we look at the quality time we’ve spent playing and laughing. Those uninterrupted days together have been a gift to us and to our child.
What do you miss the most from the “before” time?
Before, I was tutoring students daily. That was my “me time.” I absolutely love being home with my son, though I miss being a teacher. Tutoring allowed me to spend time helping children learn to read and write. It let me do what I loved and now miss the most about being a teacher.
Editor’s note: This portrait is part of Sandra Döhnert Bourne’s “I Miss Us, St. Pete: A social distance photo essay from afar.” Get links the the full photo essay and more Q&As here.
Not only was it my “me time,” but it was also a daily opportunity for my son to spend quality time with his grandparents (AKA our babysitters). They still come by every other day to see Nathan. When they arrive, I take him outside to play in the front yard. They stand behind the picket fence and call out to him. It’s a bit like he’s the animal they’ve come to see at the zoo, but it works! Nathan enjoys showing them his new tricks, like walking with his wagon, and has a captivated audience to cheer him on and praise his every move!
Did you pick up any new good habits or practices that you hope to carry into the post-coronavirus world we’re about to enter?
My college girlfriends started a Friday night Zoom call. I look forward to it every week. We meet at 8 p.m. and talk for hours. Conversations range from our families, work, marriage, politics, and needless to say, the coronavirus. We’ve even had themes, shown up in costume, and played games. There’s a lot of laughing and that brings us comfort! I honestly can’t imagine not continuing with these calls. At some point, I know life will get hectic and calendars will fill up again. But I know we will make time for it. Maybe not weekly, but monthly, I hope. It’s made us all closer, more appreciative of our friendships, and shed light on how much we’ve missed one another.
Is there any silver lining to being quarantined?
Honestly, I think this time has been an eye-opening gift. It was unimaginable two months ago to think we would live how we are living, and yet we are and we are okay. In slowing down, we seem to have made more time for family and friends, even if it’s via technology. The people in our lives are what matter most. We’ve always said it. But we haven’t always been able to prioritize it. Inadvertently, this pandemic has prioritized it for us and allowed us the time to connect.
What worries you the most about our lives going forward?
I worry we will forget the silver linings.
Do you have a message for kids and parents in the greater Tampa Bay area?
Life gets busy, often it gets too busy. Enjoy this time to just breathe and be with those you love.
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This article appears in Apr 30 – May 6, 2020.