Teaching through the Plague: Dealing with Sudden Cancellations

    A couple of weeks ago thanks to a spike in coronavirus cases in many prefectures, states of emergency were declared. Now for most people who have something like a nine-to-five job, this probably didn't have much of an impact other than a general urge to spend more of their free time at home. In fact it's well-known that the state of emergency in Japan, while the declaration of such may sound serious, do not actually "have teeth" which means nothing is seriously enforceable. Restaurants still stay open though they're asked close early and kids still go to school. Things are mostly normal, unless they're not.

    I feel good about my current jobs and that I'm not limited to just one source of income. This is important right now as any single piece of the machine can fall out of place, like when a regular private student is no longer comfortable taking classes in person but is too unskilled with technology to manage remote video lessons instead. When the state of emergency was declared for Miyagi, one of the places where I have class decided to cancel all engagements for the length of the state of emergency. I think the building is government-run which is why the regulations had more value, but in the end I don't feel like they shouldn't. It is unfortunate for me especially because there's no plan B for a place for our class. There's nowhere safer then the place that we've already chosen to have class and if we can't have class there, it's better if we just avoid class for the moment. There goes about one-third of my normal grocery money for the next 2 weeks.

    The kindergarten that I teach at up to twice a month also declared a need for a break. Of course they didn't have to do this just because of the state of emergency but it was a choice made to keep the school safer for the children. I don't disagree, but there's another $50 out of my pocket.

Financial planning during the pandemic looks a bit like this. There are hiccups and flat bits where everything was mostly solid before, but a good normal, a normal like we were used to is coming if we just figure out how to hold on.

    If you're like me and feeling a little screwed by the pandemic, there are only a few things we can do.

    First, we can try to cut excess expenditure so we were more financially prepared for the next time jobs suddenly stop. Also it is good to be thankful for whatever jobs we get to do right now as it's just not easy to make these things work these days. If you have a brain like mine that looks at the suddenly appearing holes in your income and jumps to reasons like, "I guess I'm just not a good enough teacher..." STOP. Stop right now and tell that voice to go away. You didn't start the pandemic and it's not your fault that it's still going on. Your students trying to find a way to be safe is a good thing, even if it isn't actually comfortable right now. Hang on, try to be polite and understanding, and practice self-care with whatever free time you now have.