A2 Wednesday, June 30, 2021 — DAILY REPUBLIC
Falling in love has been a lifetime affair
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ow many love remains; you times have don’t need to be you fallen in in the same room love? When was with someone to your first? What know you still was your last? Do love each other. you recall how it In time, I felt to walk on air, learned to like trying to hide a being alone. My goofy smile on Sharon Randall kids and I were your face, thinking always close, and nobody knew, but losing their dad brought everybody did? us closer. I had family, Some of us are slow friends, a job I loved and a to fall in love. I can do it faith that kept me whole. I in a heartbeat. I’ve had a never planned to remarry. lot of practice. Then, like the song My first true love was says, I fooled around and my dad. I thought the sun fell in love. So I married rose and set in his eyes. my former editor. We He’s been gone for years, share five children, and I still think that. their others, and nine I was 4 when I fell grandchildren. in love with my baby Speaking of grandchilbrother. He grabbed my dren (as I often do), I fell thumb in his tiny fist in love with them at first and held on tight. And sight. You would, too, if I decided, if need be, you saw them. I would kill to protect Why do babies tend to him. He let go of my make us fall in love with thumb, but never lost his them? Maybe we’re meant grip on my heart. to fall in love with everyIn first grade, I fell one, starting with babies for a boy named Clint. and working up to old Our class elected us to people, all ages, all races, run for king and queen all religions. of the Halloween CarniEvery morning I fall in val and I started planning love with a cup of coffee, our wedding. He showed the man who pours it, and up at the carnival in a the life we are blessed to monkey costume. When share together. we walked out on stage, Day and night, I fall he twirled his tail like a in love with family and lasso. The crowd roared friends trading messages, with laughter. And I did phone calls and visits. not love him anymore. I fall for people I’ve I can name every never met, for readers Mr. Right who ever who write to tell me about won my heart. Some their lives, for people who weren’t so right. A few do or don’t agree with me, were, well, wrong. I and for every soul I read married only two. about in the news strugMy first marriage gling to survive. lasted 30 years and gave I fall in love with the me three children who world – with its sunsets became my best friends and dahlias and humand teachers in life. I fell mingbirds and a good in love with them every peach cobbler. I don’t day, even when they much care for gophers, acted like toads. snakes or tarantula hawk When the kids grew wasps. But I try. up, we lost their dad I fall in love as often to cancer. And I found as I can, knowing it might myself alone in a four be my last chance. When bedroom house with my time here is up, I hope five sets of dishes and God will smile at how nobody to feed. I’ve loved his creation It was the first time and let me keep watching in my life I had ever it from afar. been truly alone and It would be such a gift it taught me several to get to see what my chillessons: Cooking for one dren and grandchildren is no fun. It’s why God will do with their lives, created restaurants. how they and their peers If you need someone to will right every wrong, talk to, be a good listener. solve every problem, that In “Cast Away,” Tom my generation left behind. Hanks’ best friend was I want forever to fall a volley ball. in love. How will you fall There are worse things in love today? than being alone. You’re in good company if you Sharon Randall is the like yourself. author of “The World and No two losses are Then Some.” She can be the same, but every loss reached at P.O. Box 922, brings gifts. The best gift Carmel Valley, CA 93924, for me was this simple or at www.sharon truth: People leave, but randall.com.
Addressing First Amendment controversies in public schools
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wo hot-button issues ically and in the courts. have recently emerged While the U.S. Supreme in the ongoing debate Court has largely avoided surrounding academic ruling on academic freedom and free speech in freedom cases in public public schools. schools, lower courts have One issue centers on provided considerable concerns related to the guidance. In general, lower inclusion of “critical race courts have protected local theory” in American Stephen Davis school boards and their school curricula (e.g., sysEye on education authority to make curricutemic racial discrimination lar decisions influenced by in society). The other centers on community values and needs. the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Moreover, courts have ruled ruling in favor of a former high that public schools are subject to school cheerleader who was punstate legislative authority and must ished by her school for posting conform to the education laws and profane comments about the regulations enacted by the state. school on Snapchat while she was Importantly, while cases off school grounds. relating to academic freedom typBoth examples contain ically focus on the behaviors and important implications for how practices of professional educapublic schools manage controtors, cases relating to freedom versial issues. of speech (more generally) have Before addressing the merits rendered important implicaof each, it is important to note tions for both educators and that academic freedom and free students. In recent years, court speech are closely related legal cases related to freedom of speech concepts that have somewhat difin public schools have leaned in ferent implications for universities favor of more student expression and public schools. The modern rather than less. concept of academic freedom Nevertheless, this distincwhich emerged from 19th century tion is not razor-sharp, and the German universities rests upon rights of public school students are a broad intellectual landscape of not unlimited. ideas unconstrained by narrow In the Supreme Court case partisan or political interests. involving the high school cheerThe U.S. Supreme Court stated, leader, the content of the student’s “Our nation is deeply committed to speech was profane and objectionsafeguarding academic freedom, able. However, it did not rise to the which is of transcendental value level of a “material disruption” to us all and not merely to the to the school. No one was threatteachers concerned. . . . The First ened or slandered. Moreover, the Amendment does not tolerate laws student posted her comments from that cast a pall of orthodoxy over home on her personal computer on the classroom.” a widely used social network. However, the application of acaJustice Stephen Breyer wrote, demic freedom in public schools “. . . sometimes it is necessary to is less clear and continues to be a protect the superfluous in order topic of debate practically, politto preserve the necessary.” Brey-
er’s comment echoed the court’s earlier ruling that, “students do not shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.” The debate over critical race theory, also tethered to the First Amendment, is amplified most by differing political perspectives. Importantly, state legislatures and local school boards possess sole authority to determine what is taught and how. Individual schools, teachers, administrators and labor unions have no independent authority to ignore or modify state laws and local board policies. The ideas that define critical race theory are not new. To varying degrees, states and local school districts have been addressing elements of the “theory” for nearly 50 years. There are important arguments made by advocates and opponents of the theory that ultimately must be processed through rigorous public debate and policy-making processes. While I believe that to the extent possible, public schools ought to be included in the open marketplace of ideas, it is particularly important that students are not sheltered from controversial ideas that are based upon thoughtful arguments and alternative interpretations. After all, a central mission of public education is to help students become independent, open-minded, ethical and creative thinkers. Stephen Davis is a career educator who writes a column that publishes every other Wednesday in the Daily Republic. Reach him by email at stephendavis71 @gmail.com.
bright spot
Corrections & clarifications The name of the program featured in a story in Monday’s Daily Republic should have been listed as “Rotary Feeds Families.” It’s sponsored by the Fairfield Suisun Noon Rotary Club. It is not part of Food is Free Solano, and donates to the food bank. For more information, contact KimberSmith2010@gmail.com. n n n It is the Daily Republic’s policy to correct errors in reporting. If you notice an error, please call the Daily Republic at 425-4646 during business hours weekdays and ask to speak to the editor in charge of the section where the error occurred.
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