Parenting During Corona
***UPDATE*** ABC(orona) is on exhibited at Photoville NYC at Piers 2, 4 and 6! Go check it out and see Marvi’s other group show “A Mother’s Eye”.
It’s been six weeks since we were locked into a small house with our boys. So much of our career in the last few years has been focused on traveling with the kids and documenting adventures with them. Now, the adventure was at home. Now our possible creative outlets were confined within the living room and the kitchen. Stir crazy, we devolved into a home of laundry-covered-couches, a sink full of dishes, and two verrrrrrryyyyyy active young boys addicted to video games. We always knew our parenting skills were a tad underdeveloped, and that maybe we needed a handbook. Or maybe we’re just fine, and everyone else thought the same thing too. Maybe we’re all overwhelmed and stressed. Maybe all parents and children are weighed down by the potential of everything we know collapsing around us.
We have tried to be open with our kids on many subjects — from talking about sex, politics, and mental health. We wanted to create an honest piece that parents could relate to, or maybe even use as a guide post for starting conversations with their own children. We have certainly been speaking to the boys about their privilege and the inequities in the American system that have become more apparent in the last few months. We also knew that we wanted this to be a respite from the depressing deluge of the 24-hour news cycle. ABC(orona) was borne out of the desire to create, “spark joy,” connect with other parents, and to find the vocabulary to speak to our kids about hard truths. Maybe we’re not the best people to give guidance to current and future parents, since we’re just winging it, but here we are, hoping to connect with others who know more.
ABC(orona) was an exercise in patience (it was Lord of the Flies in our house), creativity (we really wanted to take a stab at some sort of illustrative/graphic novel), and rhyming (we’re definitely not quitting our day jobs). Overall it was a fun experience. Below are some pages and BTS images. Points for those who can guess the pop-culture and historical references in some of these setups.
Big props to JL Lacar for the cover illustration and book design, Smeeta Mahanti AKA MC Smeets for her honesty and rhyming skills, and Andrea Wise for her valuable feedback. Get your ebook or paperback TODAY, and follow us HERE where we drop BTS, inspirations behind the pieces, and our personal thoughts on some of the pages.
Parents, be forewarned that this may not be the kind of book you read to your littles… Then again our kids thought “Nick Fury” reading Go the F*ck to Sleep was funny…
Giving
There are lots of people hurting right now and we’ve chosen to devote our time and resources to the following charities and individuals:
United Way of New York City - The organization helps the hardest hit New Yorkers with food, housing and benefits. Learn more about what they do and how you can help HERE.
Families in our school community who lost a loved-one from COVID-19:
North Jersey Pride - They’re dedicated to supporting LGBTQ youth and families in our area. Learn more about their mission and what you can do to help HERE.
