As we come to the end of the church year, our readings remind us of the end times, and Sunday’s gospel is no exception. We are reminded to be spiritually ready and prepared for what comes next, especially our own final end in death. These reminders are especially poignant as we are living with the results of the pandemic, remembering all the lives lost throughout the world in the past 8 months.

What does this story of 1st century Palestine Jewish wedding customs have to say to us today? Traditionally, the groom negotiated for the bride with her father and family. The bartering could go on for days, a sign that the bride was indeed treasured. When both sides came to an agreement, the groom and his family attendants would arrive to take the bride to his home. Then the party would begin!

However, when the time came, half the women were locked out because they weren’t ready after all their waiting; their lamps had gone out. Instead, they were at the store when it was time to enter the feast. How could this story have worked out differently? Could the women have been more prepared? Could they have changed and thought and planned ahead?

Looking to the first reading, I believe the emphasis is on being wise. Being wise in terms of Jesus means knowing that we are all waiting, and that this waiting is with the assurance that he will come; the waiting is not just a waste of time. And part of the waiting is having the oil to greet the bridegroom.

How do you wait? Very often we are usually impatient, trying to find the shortest line, the smallest crowd, the quickest way in and out. During these past 8 months, we have come to see the graces of waiting, of slowing down, of being attentive. We are more present to the One who will come, even though we don’t know when.

We still have time to change. The door is not locked for us yet. God is available to us now with the gift of Wisdom, to show us what we must still do to keep a good supply of oil. We acknowledge our need and dependence upon God so that we may be able to shed the light of our faith on the world. May we be ready, living the life that Jesus recommended in last week’s scriptures: being peaceful, and kind, and merciful… as we await our end time.

I hope everyone is doing well and staying safe. We are in our second week back at school and everything is going well. We have been surprised how well the students have settled back and how smooth the drop off and pick up is doing. We are making slight adjustments to times of drop off and pick up after school. We will notify every one of the changes as we have been doing the last few weeks.

Extended Care

We are conducting an Extended Care return survey for K-4 families at the moment. Priority goes to essential healthcare workers and will be limited to 20 students. Extended care will take place in the cafeteria. If we go ahead with extended care, pick up will be from the upper yard, by ringing the bell outside the doors at the Kindergarten end of the school building.

Cafeteria

Cafeteria service is on hold until Monday, November 30th. More details will be forthcoming and how to order lunch. We will need families to preorder lunch by the Sunday afternoon for that week. Meals will be prepared at our cafeteria, placed in brown paper bags, and given to the students in their classroom.

Return of More Students

Grades 3 and 4 students will be returning on Monday, November 9th. Grades 5 – 8 will return on Monday, November 30th. There will be a parent Zoom meeting for Grades 5 – 8 parents on Thursday, November 19th at 7pm to discuss the return procedures.

Please review our return to school mitigation plan at any time. We are often updating it due to new information from the health department.

Thanksgiving Travel

With Thanksgiving approaching, we encourage families to stay within your family bubble. In the event that families travel or associate with other people it will be necessary for COVID-19 testing as a protection for the school community. We are relying on everyone to be considerate of those around us. In the event of any testing, it is the moral thing to contact the Principal of any positive results from testing.

Physical Education Classes

Regarding PE classes, we have noticed that it has been difficult for the teacher to conduct onsite lessons with DL at the same time. Therefore, Rhythm and Moves is now providing video lessons which are very nice for students to follow on their own from home. These lessons have started today for the K-2 students and will continue for grades 3-4 DL students next week. Your teachers will explain how to assess these lessons.

End of Trimester

A reminder to parents that the end of the trimester is on November 13th. It is important that all tuition and fees are up to date by this date. As per the school agreement, any outstanding tuition will mean that students are unable to continue their studies.

Umbrellas for Students

In light of how we are dropping off students in the morning, we will require students to have an umbrella and use it when we have rainy weather. Please ensure you keep an umbrella in the car for your child.

God Bless,

Vincent Riener

Principal

Dear All Souls Families,

You can now pay and add credit to your child/children's cafeteria account through SchoolSpeak. Your payment will be processed through PayPal with a 3% convenience fee for all transactions.

Sign-in to your SchoolSpeak account and select "Lunch Order" in the quick links menu on the left. The "Pay" tab will direct you to your payment options. You may pay the cafeteria balance through your existing PayPal account or as a guest using your credit or debit card. You may also add credit to your child/children's cafeteria account. If you wish, you may still make cash or check payments to the school office.

Please note, for the families that have a credit card on file I will no longer be charging your credit card for lunch payments. You are responsible for paying and adding credit to your cafeteria account.

Feel free to contact me with any questions.

Regards,

Ms. Escobar

9-13- Star Testing Continues

11- Veteran's Day

16- Staff Dev. Mtg. - 12:20 Dismissal

17- School Board Mtg. - 6:30pm

23-27- Thanksgiving Holiday - Thanksgiving Day 11.26

30- School Resumes

Please check with all providers regarding current summer program dates, times,

and other important information.