“Pye of Several Things”

Many years ago, we found this recipe in Gourmet magazine, and have been making it every November since. According to the original write-up, it is an adaptation of a recipe found in a very early collection of colonial recipes. We can’t guarantee its authenticity, or if it was ever consumed by a Pilgrim, but we can tell you it is tasty. Plus, you have to respect the alternate spelling, and the mysterious recipe title. Several things? Pye sounds good, but I’m going to need a little more information about those “things”…

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/spinach-ham-and-cheese-pie-pye-of-several-things-104247

And now for an update on our School Year of Several Things…

A couple weeks ago, we began putting plans in place for Ben to do remote instruction. We appreciate the wonderful job that his teachers, staff and administrators have done to keep him safe and learning, and he has actually been having a great year. Ben is mask-compliant, but I don’t think he can truly conceptualize how critical it is for him to practice good hygiene and social distancing. He brought a nasty virus home from school (having been nowhere else) to share with us. This time it was a stomach bug. What virus might it be next time? Next, a Covid-19 study was released from England that found a ten times higher mortality rate in individuals with Down syndrome. Then, as cases were rising in the area, his district’s school board voted to discard their hybrid model (where schools ran at half capacity, and those not in school did remote instruction) and bring everybody back at full capacity. Though our insurance had approved in-home care for Ben, it took some time for staffing to be found. Thursday was to be his last in-person day, but Wednesday we were notified that everyone was going remote, due to a rise in cases in school.

I know districts everywhere are doing the best they can, with very little support and guidance. Our family of four is involved in four different school systems in different capacities. I teach remotely from my classroom, and have all year. Ben attended in-person at half capacity, but will now be all remote. Sophia taught in-person, but now will be doing remote instruction, for at least a few weeks. A few days remain in Phil’s semester of in-person instruction on campus. I know the effort on the part of the administration, faculty, staff and students that has gone into keeping everyone safe and present on Lycoming College’s campus. 

No decision is clear-cut, and without serious ramifications for lives and livelihoods. I understand the trade-offs inherent in choices those in power must make, but there are things we ordinary citizens can do. We can protect the vulnerable. Ben and I are both in risk groups, and our family takes every precaution we can. We have made many personal sacrifices. We appreciate how many of you have done the same. Ben and I want to thank, from the bottom of our hearts, all of you who wear a mask, and who deny yourselves the things that put others at risk. Thank you to all who understand that the measure of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable; how it treats its Bens.