I had a dream recently that I sent my two littlest to the elementary school up the road and they were late getting there - not only a week late starting because I was trying to make up my mind, but even late on the first day, and they came home in the middle of the afternoon with the sunshine pouring down, dragging their jackets and their lunch boxes and backpacks thumping... I'd had all this time on my hands all day and I felt really... displaced! I lost my job as their day teacher. I also wondered what they had heard and done all day, not knowing what their input that day was. Most of all I had missed them. I suppose that's some of the reasons why I homeschool, anyway. When I woke up I wondered wow, what about that? Would I consider sending my kids to school?
Homeschooling is not all fun and idealistic. Being Mom and primary teacher is really hard. You have to find ways to cope. Living all together all the time can really be a challenge. Incorporating the kids into the household routine is necessary. This morning one little one took a loaf of bread and prepared cheese sandwiches for lunch. Before we ate lunch I had supper starting on the stove. I got help there too. And they all cleared the pile of clean wash Daddy made on the couch the afternoon before at lightening speed: If you pretend they're invisible robots that are stealing your folded laundry to put it away they love it and work much faster. ("Let's see... I was sure I put the towels right there, and now they're gone! What on earth??") This is so necessary to have them shoulder a part of running the house because nobody can feel academic in a chaotic environment!
We watched the baby eagles on webcam today. As we watch them we all like to narrate what it looks like they would say if they could talk:
"Hey, move over. Move. Hey, hey, I see someone flying it our sky! Is that mom? MOM! HI MOM! HI!!! No, wait- that's a goose. Aw, where's mom?? I want some more cat bits to eat. Is this edible? (no, guess not.) -Hey!! stop biting my toes! THERE's Mom. Me! Me! Me! No I want to put my head in mom's feathers! you stay over there by the skeleton."
Cracking up at your dream. I've had ones that are similarly strange. There are SO many reasons to homeschool for me... I wouldn't necessarily even say that an "exercise" is my first reason, if that makes sense... "could" I send my children to public school, and "could" we raise strong Christian kids that want to glorify the Lord through public school? Yes, we "could". But, I think that my heart would break a little bit each day, and I would not trade our time together (even the tough days where we all feel like we're losing our minds-there is somethng to be learned on those days too), our conversations, and the joy of being the one to help them on their lifelong path of learning for anything.
ReplyDelete"...All losing our minds"- hauntingly familiar.
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