The COVID-19 pandemic has to be a real letdown for the Class of 2020. They've worked years to earn their graduation, prom, baccalaureate, and senior banquets all to have it wiped away by the pandemic.
The end of the 2020 school year is also a disappointment for teachers and staff at schools across the country. They also feel a sense of tremendous pride in watching their students graduate.
Virdie Montgomery, the principal of Wylie High School in Texas, didn't feel like he was doing enough to congratulate the class of 2020, so he decided he would do so in person to all 612 graduating seniors.
After all, the self-described "66-year-old, fat, bald principal" was known for his exuberant school spirit. He once dressed as an Elf on the Shelf and perched himself on top of the school's marquee to celebrate the holidays.
via Virdie Montgomery / Facebook
"I get emotional real easy with my kids," he told WFAA. "And I just didn't feel like I was doing enough. It just seemed like the right thing to do."
So the principal and his wife jumped in their car and got to work.
"She told me I was crazy," Montgomery said. "I tell you what, that first day, at the end of the first day it felt like I had made a mistake. Because it was hard," he said. He delivered a Snickers candy bar to each student and it came along with a dad joke.
He told them each that they'd look back on these days and "snicker." "I delivered that joke nearly 600 times. So it's pretty lame," he admitted.
"I just love our kids and they have awesome families I have found," he wrote on Facebook. "If I missed someone it was totally by chance."
It took 12 days and put over 800 miles on his car's odometer but Montgomery and his wife were able to reach all 612 seniors at trips to 636 addresses.
"I am now a well-traveled Wylie person and found parts of the town I did not know existed and so many Pirates that live on the other side of town was humorous as well," he wrote on Facebook.
The principal hopes that someday his school will be able to hold a graduation ceremony for the Class of 2020. Texas's statewide stay-at-home order ended on Thursday so people are starting to get back to normal.
Non-essential businesses, including shopping malls, retail establishments, movie theaters, are now allowed to operate at 25% capacity. Museums, libraries, and restaurants are now open as longs as people practice social distancing.
Large gatherings in the state are still forbidden until further notice.
Montgomery's trip surely brightened the days of his students on lockdown, but it meant just as much to him. "All I know is that for me it was something I needed to do," he said, "I can't adequately describe the reward it is to get to do this and see these kids in their natural environment."
Beaver in water. Photo by 
An actual beaver dam on the now-thriving Price River
Not just coworkers—family, friends, strangers, kids…
Imagine having to go so badly but being out of euros. 
Anything hobbit-esque can't be wrong. 
But what if you need pain meds AND mascara?!
Imagine how this would affect childcare.
Honestly…where's the lie?
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Urgent dash to the bathroom! 🚪🏃♂️
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Close-up of bottom of ladybug found in colonPhoto credit: 
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."