(Cleveland, OH) When a rash of teacher strikes broke out around the United States in 2018 and 2019, Robin DeFosse was quick to condemn their actions. The former Staples manager took to social media, posting, "THEY DON'T EVEN WORK TWELVE MONTHS A YEAR!"
When some of her contacts on Facebook responded with personal stories and anecdotes from their friends about the hardships facing those in education, DeFosse doubled down.
"It's glorified baby-sitting - seriously, I have three kids, I am always working for them - AND I DON'T EVEN GET PAID!"
After several exchanges of this type that resulted in the reciprocal blocking of some college-era acquaintances, DeFosse's position cemented against teacher's unions in general and the Cleveland Teacher's Union in particular. Despite not having brought it up again, DeFosse assumed a default position in opposition to teacher's unions in discussions and limited political action.
After Gov. DeWine announced the closing of all of the states' schools on March 12th, DeFosse accepted the news over a glass of chardonnay at her dinner table.
"I mean, of course, they're closing the schools. Those people aren't essential employees. They don't do anything! I mean, my 9th grader didn't even know what year Columbus discovered America. Can you imagine? We'd have been laughed out of history class!"
In the first weeks of the schools closing, DeFosse attempted to make certain that her children, Maddox, 13, Emma, 12, and Aiden, 10, were logging into their online classes, getting some exercise in the backyard, and were generally well-fed. "See!? There's nothing to it," she posted on March 25th, along with some pictures of her children, looking productive.
However, in the coming days, she found out that Emma was using the time to record TikTok videos behind closed doors, and Maddox hadn't checked in on his online history class in nearly two weeks. The thirteen year-old had, instead, been playing Grand Theft Auto, and pausing the game to affect studying when he heard his mother's footsteps on the stairs. The youngest child made no pretense at attempting to do school work and, instead, used the days to question every action his mother took during the day.
"The kid asked me everything. He asked me why we had twelve months in the calendar, not ten. He asked me if the color I see as blue is the same color he sees as blue. He asked me if I'd ever been to California. Then, before I could answer, he asked me why I hadn't taken him to California ever. He asked why he couldn't have wine - you know I like to have a glass or two in the afternoon - that's when I had an idea," confessed DeFosse to a close friend. "I remembered those pills that Mark had from when he hurt his back."
Though she didn't act immediately on the thought, the events over the course of the next several weeks drove DeFosse to desperate action. "Emma had just bitten Maddox over some bullshit about having taken too long in the shower again, and I just thought, 'I need these kids to shut the fuck up. Just shut the fuck up for like ten minutes. I can't believe it - they're my kids, and I..." The 41 year-old paused to take another pull at her chardonnay and said, "I hate the little fuckers. I hate them. I do."
After another bottle and a good cry, DeFosse made an action plan. After putting a few doses of Lortab into her the sugary breakfast cereal that her children eat, she gathered the children around the television, putting on the afternoon news that she'd been unable to watch, uninterrupted, recently. With a few protestations, the children eventually succumbed to the medication and slept through most of the afternoon.
"It was bliss. It was easy. And, I got to catch up on my friend Chelsea's Instagram. You know what? Dealing with these kids isn't hard at all. You just need to be inventive."
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