New Year's Eve Partay- Got Goals?

New Year's Eve Partay 'round here.

No chips. Gave up chips (probably for life) in September. I am no longer mourning the loss.
No soda. I gave up my weekly Diet Coke in September as well. I am still mourning the loss and have fallen off the wagon a couple of times, but the siren song weakens.
No cake, cupcakes, brownies or bars.  I was already carb-light but now it's official.
No ice-cream. I've always been lactose intolerant, but this past week I gave up any kind of milk based product (most commonly found in my morning coffee). Instead I've been spiking my daily brew with honey and Cinnamon and loving it.
No chocolate. Chocolate has never really been my thang. Unless it's chock full of nuts and Carmel (think Snickers). I've been white- sugar free (mainly) since September. No biggie (except for the traditional Apple Pie).

Maybe a large cabbage salad, a game of Catan, capped off with a chick flick with my only remaining, living at home, chick. Woohoo. Living large, baby.

Actually, all of the above have to do with actual goals I've already made, and action plans to accomplish them. Today, we'll be setting 2013 Goals, and actionable steps to get 'em done. (I've already been talking up The Art of Non-Conformity - which you're sure to hear more about- and I really like the spreadsheet Chris G. made for his Annual Review) .

A couple of quotes are guiding me this year

Self-Management is about Perspective - focus on the right thing -and

Control -the ability to effectively manage all the things coming at you.

 (David Allen, GTD)

and

You manage what you measure. (Peter Drucker).

With those things in mind, we've already changed some things up with Feeche's course work for his last semester of his Senior Year and our weekly schedule. Which is a relief. He's already happier, and when my kids are happier, I'm happier (you know, as in Momma's only as happy as the least happy child). We changed things because they weren't fitting with our goals- Feeche's personal goals or our goals for him. What areas do you set goals in?

 

Some of Mine

Health

Writing

Homeschool

Faith Walking

Family

Friends

Learning

$- earning, giving, saving.

Home Management

House Re-build

For each of these areas, I'll be making 2-5 "action steps." If I run out of action steps, I'll make "next action" steps. I am also going to write down how I know I'll have accomplished my goals. The vague, "write" will give place to "write 1000 words daily."

Some goals are super easy for me; for instance, "Learning." I am a natural and cultivated auto-didact and bibliophile. I do the 52 books in a Year challenge. This year, because of some other challenges we are taking on, along with the fact that I have some more difficult books in my stack, I'm cutting myself some slack about actual numbers. I'll still be reading very intentionally. Now that I have 3 successful years under my belt of completing the challenge, the focus has shifted.

Others are not so easy for me like health. I have some health challenges that continually discourage me. Discouragement, I have found, is one of the bans of my existence. So, I'm going to be clear about my goals, remind myself of what the next thing is and simply do the action step. I don't have to worry about the outcome. I'm going to focus on the simple and profound, "One day at a time."

Other areas are easy for me, but I don't clearly communicate to others, or don't make it "accessible" to them. For instance, the youngers are memorizing Horatius at the Bridge. I know they can do it, all beautiful, lyrical 70 stanzas. They are not so sure. I'm making a chart for them, with little squares representing each stanza that they can mark off, along with the grand poombah "YOU DID IT" award reminder at the end. I think this will help them see that they ARE getting it done, it is manageable and they are going to FINISH!

In addition to goals, I'll be making a visual reminder of what my Word of the Year is going to be along with doing some of the other exercises found over at Susannah's site.

So, how are you celebrating New Year's Eve? Got Goals, Word for the Year or Next Action steps?

For my 2012 Wrap-Up, Go Here.
 

A Very Good Year- 2012 Review

It's Review and Resolution Time! 

 

2012 was a challenging year and in some ways I am beyond ready for a new one. Before I get to what I'm planning and hoping for in 2013, I'm reflecting back on 2012. What worked, what didn't; what got done, what was un-done.

Sukkot Celebration

Overview

Good Reads: 63 to date. You can read my 52 Books in a Year Wrap-Up Here.
House Re-build Projects: We made great strides in the re-build program. You can read about it here: Project Report
Writing/ Blogging: I had a short story published, Grandpa's Cottage in an anthology of short stories about growing up in the Midwest (Shapato Publishing). Golden Grasses added followers (THANK-YOU for following and reading this blog!) and I joined the TOS Review Crew (woot!)! I also did several reviews and the most give-aways I've ever done. A total blast!
Family: 2 Graduations: R with a B.A. and KB with a Cosmetology degree/license and an engagement.

School: Last spring was one of the best homeschooling semesters we've ever had. We utilized a plethora of resources, in-sourcing, out-sourcing, probably side-sourcing as we went. The list included
Tutoring Center Academic Class Day (choose the classes, paid teachers, homework, presentations, tests); classes taken: Latin, Science, Writing.
Co-op Fine Arts/ Enrichment: art, music, unit study.
Virtual Classes with Landry Academy pre-law, copywriting, Intro to Biblical Greek
Classes at Home including GC, DVD's, CD's, games, on-line info (NOAA and NASA web-sites etc), Rosetta Stone, travel, field trips, great books.

 

  Travel

 Nothing exotic, but lots of family trips

April: Chicago -to see Gram

May- Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana- R's Graduation

May and Oct- Georgia - Feeche's Challenge staff training and then camp

July- Wisconsin-Aunt Rosie and Uncle Kirk's 50th and N. Reunion

Several trips to Nebraska and Iowa to go to the airport,

 (Hi Lynn and Paul!!- thanks for taking in our wayward son on zero notice!),

visit the Adat and rendezvous with Grandparents to transport KB)

 

Camps/ Classes

Tantara- Festival of One Act Plays

Drama Camp

Shakespeare Festival

Challenge staff trng/ Challenge Staff

Clay Class

First Lego League

Poetry Out loud

 Tutoring Center

Co-op

Karate

 

Fav Classes of the Year

Flower: Art (Clay class, TC and co-op); American History unit (co-op); Horse study (B.F. Summer Camp -I taught)
Cub: Mary Daly's Science (co-op); Drawing (co-op- I taught)
Feeche: Mary Daly's History and Science (co-op); Creative Writing (TC- I taught)
Me: Great Courses Shakespeare and Science;  math tutoring; Science at TC (Cub); Shakespeare Camp; FLL; Creative Writing, Writing With Skill, Horaitus at the Bridge

Fav Curriculum of the Year:

Memoria Press FMOG, Horatius at the Bridge, Copywork Cursive, Xian Studies

Rosetta Stone

D'Aulaires Norse Myths and Greek Myths on CD

 

What went right?

Programs that are academically rigorous and challenging, coupled with a lot of good books, fun, experiences and hands on learning. The kids didn't listen to as many CD's as they have in the past and I could tell a difference.

Working through the list of house projects - we still have a ways to go but we made great progress!

Books- the kids didn't read as much as they have in the past. That's about to change!

Books- feeds my inner lit nerd. Found some great new authors. As always, reading expands my world.

Work-out- Feeche was the most diligent. Dr. Dh ran in to some health challenges that slowed him down and I never found a good schedule to get it done. LOVE working out and getting intentional about it for 2013 is on the list.

Feeche found a great Karate studio and l.o.v.e.s it, along with writing for several hours each week.

I have continued to get organized, thanks to GTD and AONC!

 

 

How 'bout you? Did you do a 2012 Review?
For more inspiration, check out the TOS Crew Blog Cruise 2012: A Look Back
(FYI: it will post Jan.1, until then it's a blank page)

For my New Year's Eve Partay; Got Goals? check HERE

Just Say "YES!"



Just finished my second book by Chris Guillabeau (The $100 Start-up) which I liked very much. Good info, great ideas. One of Chris's core values is to "Say, Yes!" He admits that this flies in the face of traditional biz practice which says, "Guard your time," "Guard yourself," "Say NO!" and, in general practice the art of narcissistic stinginess.

My vacation-time read (loved family camp!) was William (Bill) Shatner's, "Up Till Now." (did you know I was going to marry Bill when I was 8? That was the plan, but different story..). One of Shatner's core values is to "Say Yes!" to whatever opportunities come his way. Because of this he's had an incredibly long, successful and diverse career and personal life.

I think it's easy in life to be stingy, get stingy, live in stingy-ville. I'm gonna get mine is the philosophy de jour. Introspective naval gazing, iow, it's all about me and my naval, has hit all time highs with "social media" (reality check- you don't have "friends" on social media- you have a computer) but there I go be stingy in my assessment of social media (reality check: I love social media- it rocks on so many levels. I just want to be sure I understand what it is, rather than believe what I'm told it is).

In one of my paper's for seminary I wrote, "People want, hope, to be invited in, to be invited to serve, to minister, to have their gifts and passions and skills utilized and valued, to be part of the fellowship." The prof wrote exclamations after these statements, and made statements to the effect of, Wow! They'd never thought of that before.

I'm often shocked at people's stinginess. Often. We invite folks coming and going. We invite even when it's inconvenient. But the reality is that it's not always reciprocated. Which stings. "Cause stingy and stinging are kinda part of the same thang. But then I have to get over myself and leave bitterville behind, and be, as Hivers say, and my friend Caitilin reminds me to be, the bigger person.

It's Advent and the real reason for the season is the recognition that we are waiting.And it doesn't make sense on so many levels. Christianity, and a life of faith, is paradox upon paradox. We say "Yes!" to a baby, born in poverty, on the run, unwelcome in his own community because of his mother's scandalous pregnancy. And when we do, we are changed, transformed, challenged and pruned. And in the end, the baby becomes the King. We say Yes to one thing and amazing opportunities present themselves.

I'm saying "Yes!" to some areas in my life that are challenging, difficult and make me nervous. Seriously, I hate doing stuff I don't know how to do. But saying Yes often entails doing lots of stuff we don't know how to do. So, I'm going to bite the bullet, face the fear and say Yes. I'm not sure of the outcomes, or the success or any of the unknowns. I just don't know. And that can be stifling and stagnating, too. But as I evaluate the last year, and make plans for the coming year, it's time to say "Yes" to some things. Maybe it will be t he year of the Yes....

What are you going to say "YES!" to in this coming year?
 

Getting Things Done

It all started over at the Hive with a thread about Discouragement and Getting Things Done. I often think discouragement about getting things done can be solved by answering 2 questions:

What do you want/ need to get done and

How will you know when you've gotten it done.

That being said, I have a whole list of stuff I'm not getting done because I'm busy getting other things done and frankly, I'm just not organized enough around details. Secondly, I've been in this on-going slump that I just haven't been able to shake off since the fire and have felt generally very, very discouraged, tired, and weary. Was it the fire, the funerals, hitting 50, the older girls moving waaay, waaaay too far away? Hmmm......whatevah, I really wasn't looking for any kind of management system that would just heap ashes on my global thinking, randomly organized head. I mean, we already get a LOT done. But the discouragement portion of the conversation hit a nerve.

So, I listened and ended up jumping in; both feet (it's my way). It ended up focusing on a system called, likely enough, Getting Things Done, by David Allen. Apparently, I'm late to the party because there are all sorts of GTD groupies, systems, apps, etc. Who knew (well, apparently everyone but me), that you needed your own personal label-er if you really want to get things done?

The conversation evolved and a whole lot of books got mentioned, including but not limited to Getting Things Done,  10 Habits of Happy Moms, Happiness Project, Happier at Home, Zen to Done, The Art of Non-Conformity. I haven't checked them all out yet, but I've delved in to a few and it's basically a list about focused intentionality in various areas of your life. Which is the whole point of GTD.

So far, I've read most of GTD and the big "Aha!" moments came for me when realizing that my daily schedule is different than "errands" and "projects." Projects are also not something you get done in one fell swoop but consist of tasks that get done one at a time. Filing is straightforward, alpha-ordered. The big shazam for me was this, "one of the biggest problems with most people's personal management systems is that they blend a few actionable things with a large amount of data and material that has value but no action attached!" Wow, I feel like things just got so clear. Seriously. Read the book yourself, and discover your own Shazam, 'cause there's so much more to it all.

I also read The Happiness Project this week; Gretchen Rubin's foray into intentionally deciding to be happy and steps to get there. I didn't like this book at first, it seemed shallow and cheesy. In the end I liked Gretchen, her family and her little project. Food for thought, but not life- changing. She is a self described "reverent agnostic, " and, having read her book, I see her Happiness Project as a  moral compass for someone who simply doesn't have an external one. Good enough and some nuggets throughout, but rather random, imho.

Lastly, I read The Art of Non-Conformity. My fav so far, in this genre of intentional living. I like the author, what he's saying, how he's living. Big take-away from his stuff is "Be awesome" but there is soo much more. Check out Chris's web-site and see if you fit with the rest of his "small army." I took several pages of notes from the book and his web-site- ideas, thoughts, etc. Stuff I haven't put into words for a long time. It felt good to write it all down and see in black and white this is what I want, and this is how I'm going to go about getting it.

I also had a big Shazam while reading this book. We are fairly non-conformist. We have a slew of grad degrees, a slew of kids, have gone off the beaten path as we've birthed, parented and educated them, live off the beaten path (literally) on our homestead, have basically re-built a house from the studs up, etc. I get this non-conformist living thang. And in many ways, it's what Dreher is talking about in his book Crunchy Cons. So, I get that. But lately we've taken some extra hits for living a bit off-grid and I feel weary from that, too. It was nice to read the book and relate to people who are saying, outloud,  "We're not doing the average thang. And btw, we're not apologizing for it either." K, just need that external validation once every decade or so. I'm shallow like that.

Mystie, over at Convivial Living has designed a 31 Days of GTD for Homesmakers.. It's a great overview of the GTD program and she is also currently developing an Ebook on how to digitize GTD for homemakers. I read through every.single.one of her GTD posts and was so intrigued that I went and bought the book (which is very unusual for me these days. I usually just wait for it to make it to my pre-order shelf at the library). It's a keeper, and I'm glad I bought it. Really, check out Mystie's web-site- she's a rock out home manager!

So, what's all this meant for me/us personally?
How I am thinking of things is different- I'm re-categorizing some things. Projects are separate from errands, are separate from our calendar, etc.
I'm going to re-do all of the files in the study, and yes, I bought a labeler.
To date, we've cleaned up the study, which included sorting through hundreds of books. I'm being pretty ruthless, and am still deciding how I'm going to pass along the purged items. I'm also going through all of the books in the attic as well. When I'm done, we'll have gone through the entire library. More importantly, we have room in the study to work. We have access to the books we use, rather than a huge library that gets in the way of what we need. Not that a library is a bad thing. But we are past the point of needing all of the Berenstain Bears on the shelves.
I'm thinking more clearly about how to manage writing, reading, etc. Things that are not clearly home-making/home schooling, but still very important to me.
We are honing our management systems so that we can get more done. Both Dr.Dh and I.

How do you  manage the tasks you have at hand? Are you a GTD expert, 7 Habits follower or something else all together? Thoughts?

Are You Raising Kids?



I've been in the parenting business for awhile now - a quarter of century to be exact. While I do and have done a lot of child rearing (raising) I don't tell people that I'm raising children.

A friend of mine states that she's not raising children either, she's raising adults. I get her point. I'd hate to think that at the end of twenty years of investing into the lives of our offspring we still have kids on our hands.

But I've always taken the view that the people we are raising are spiritual beings. Therefore, our job is to raise them with the hope of heaven an eternity spent with the Master and Creator of the Universe. In other words, I'm not raising kids, or adults. I'm raising spiritual beings that will live for all eternity. It's a radical concept, my belief in eternity, but I'm committed to it. Furthermore, I believe that there is a heaven and a hell and people who choose a life devoid of God will live an eternity devoid of God.

Our house is pretty kid friendly. We've been deliberate in the types of toys we've chosen- open ended and imaginative play things, art supplies, the great outdoors, etc. Coupled with that we've thrown in lots of real work (because our life on the acreage- which all of our kids, at the time it was purchased, willingly agreed to participate in) demands it. We've added in a healthy dose of travel, opportunities, experiences and literature, while limiting electronics and screen-time.

In addition to that we've homeschooled, providing our kids with a personalized, private education, delivered by highly educated and engaged parents.

As they've entered adulthood, life has gotten more complicated. Higher education is obscenely expensive and not always a ticket to anywhere, like-minded travelers fewer, the siren sound of comfort and dissatisfaction louder; those who would disparage our efforts more deliberate. While we've never demanded that our kids move out at a certain age or get a college degree regardless of debt, our home is not exactly young-adult friendly. We can't answer all of the problems and questions and demands of the young adults we've raised from birth. We don't have superfluous amounts of money for extra cars or smart phones and we continue to watch movies as a family that are morally acceptable for the youngest member of the family.

And frankly, that's not my problem. I've been criticized both for being too controlling and enmeshed as well as not being generous, gentle, kind or responsible enough. The reality is that I am living out MY call. And once my kids hit adult-hood, it's their job to diligently seek out theirs. The task requires diligence and effort and prayer and tears. Because the gap between the sheltered child-hood that my husband and I have sacrificed and prayerfully provided for them and eternity contains a big wide world that would love to eat them alive, physically, mentally, familially and spiritually. "Almost Christian" is good enough in some circles, but I'm fundamentalist enough to believe that it won't be in heaven.

I continue to lay the firmest foundation I know to lay which includes prayer, training in the precepts of our faith, biographies of our spiritual fathers and mothers, apologetics training, political and world view discussions, activism, and more prayer. And it might not be enough. There are only first generation Christians in the Kingdom. Everyone's faith must be their own.

And I can only do what I'm called to do- raise and train. It's a front end load proposition and not outcome oriented. It requires faith to even attempt and more faith to try to live out.

The Demands of Education.



Image by Marekuliasz

I was part of an on-line discussion recently about  Classical Education, Beauty, Truth and STEM focus. Basically it was a big long discussion about how people homeschool rigorously, prepare for the real world, live in the real world and insure outcome (i.e. kids who can join in the Great Conversation (i.e. classically educated) and are still vocational competitive in a global market.
The idea of this discussion alone is enough to make even the most stalwart educator turn and run screaming, private, public, home or otherwise.

Seriously. There are just 24 hours in a day. We stuggle to balance academics with hands on activities, focus heavily on literature and the "Great Conversation," instilling a sense of wonder and awe about the most amazing scientific stuff, and still have time to revel in the Truth and Beauty of God and all that He has done.

It's been a 2 decade + balancing act. Some years/kids/seasons we've done better than others. Which is how we landed on a classical pedagogy. It's fits best. Even with that, it's a difficult balancing act; WE weren't classically educated. We live in a world that tests for lots of stuff we don't focus on and little that we do. Ds 17 can talk intelligently for 2 hours straight, without notes, about the Punic War (along with many other topics) but still struggles with spelling. Any guess about how that tranlates on the Iowa Basic?

I have lofty goals. I know how to be rigorous. I get unschooling. I love the idea of autodidactism.  I love the idea of raising renaissance men and women.

Reality: our house burned, 1/2 my family died, my gram is going a little nuts, we are re-building a house, our older kids are struggling to make their way as adults, our cars die and demand beaucoups $ over and over again... if it wasn't all of the above it would be something else. And I'm sure your reality has a host of challenges sitting, like a big white elephant, in the middle of your life as well.

IRL: I look at my older kids and can tell you, in living color, all of the many ways we've failed them. I look at the family we've sacrificed to create and wonder (on bad days) about just how crazy we were to have more than 1.6 kids, one income, advanced education, a vocation instead of a job with security. Catch me on a bad day and I will talk you out of homeschooling, home-making and living by faith. I will lead you, by the hand, to a secular, 2 income, 1.6 kid life that is safe, secure, and has lots of perks, including vactions, health and dental and a 401K.

Irl: We have wanted more for our homeschooling than we've been able to afford.
Irl: homeschooling is expensive, financially, socially, emotionally
Irl: It's a lonely road

The reality is that we don't get it perfect. We've failed. We've let things slide. We didn't call some things right. And we are still homeschooling.

The reason is that homeschooling, for us, stems (pun intended) from our belief that we are called to train up our kids in the way they should go. We call it wrong, they have their own ideas, there are no assured outcomes. That's one of the things that drives me nuts about a certain branch of homeschoolers. They advocated doing "A" and make statments to the fact that it will insure "B".

Irl: We know families who have tried to live up to that ideal and it has broken them, ruined their families and alienated their kids.
Irl: kids don't cooperate, are willful and have a zillion other voices screaming at them for attention and approval, including the enemy of their souls, who is cunning, decietful and determined.
Irl: Parents struggle and can't be all that their kids want or need. There is little grace in the world for families that sacriifice to do anything out of the ordinary.

So, education. One of the biggest concerns of most parents with kids. There are no easy answers. Homeschooling is one. It's a good one. It's made better by a methodology that delivers on what it promises, (like Classical, but also like the Government Schools -honestly, that have, until recently, delivered on their promises- we just don't happen to agree with their secular starting point). It's made better by parents who understand the limits of homeshcooling and are  realistic about those limits. It's made better by folks who don't hold homeschooling out as a panacea to all of the world's ills. It's made better by folks who actually educated their kids at home.

Truth, Beauty, Goodness, STEM focus, the Great Conversation? We address these various points, through various methods. Our goal is not to be perfect at any of them. Our goal is to understand our children, their unique personalities and focus on training them, body, mind and soul, to embrace LIFE and the truth and beauty it promises.

Thoughts?

Top 10 Items for Homeschooling

What are your top 10 items needed for homeschooling? Here's mine. When you're done, write yours and go link up!

1 -Belief in something bigger than ourselves, that His plans and purposes for us and our children are good and that homeschooling is part of His plan. Otherwise, why go through the trial, turmoil and expense  of homeschooling?

2- Vision. We've homeschooled long enough (finishing up year 21) to have gone through some highs and lows as we've gone thorugh this little academic adventure. Without a clear reason about WHAT we are doing and WHY, we wouldn't have made it this far!

3- Imagination. Without the ability to be envisioning what's next, what else is out there, I would go slowly mad. I mean, if math fact sheets were all there were to homeschooling....I like math fact sheets, but they are rather limited in scope. Gotta move beyond the page.

4- Curiosity. Who else is working the program, creating things, formulating ideas, putting things together? How can I glean from them, learn from them, grow and develop as an educator.

5- A husband that believe in homeschooling and creating an educational environment to the point of working double time so that I can stay home and educated our kids. Even when that mean financial and emotional sacrifice for him.

6- The Library. Yours, mine, ours. One of the joys of homeschooling is discovering other bibliophiles who are only too happy to loan you one of their favorite books, CD's or DVD's series. I love saying and hearing these words, "Have you seen/read/discovered X yet? Ohhh! I have a book (CD, DVD) of theirs to loan you!"
7- Writing instruments. Tools of the trade. Pens, pencils, paper, sharpeners, erasers, paper cutters, clips, notebooks, clip boards. Love the stuff. Office supplies stores make me happy. Having the proper tools around, ready to go- priceless.

8- Curriculum that works. I no longer buy curriculum that will be "fun." I buy curriculum based on my educational pedagogy, because I believe that hard work is reward, that my pedagogy is timeless and will work, that my kids need to learn the value of something bigger than fun. I limit myself to a few tried and true curriculum suppliers and L.O.V.E. their stuff. It's like aspirin. "Take two, give it time, works every time."

9- Time. Time to study, think, mull. This is the reason we've unplugged and limited electronics. I'd much rather my kids spent time field walking and tramp jumping and gardening and reading than having their brains filled with someone else's shallow idea of a thought.

10- Like-minded homeschooling families.Invaluable. Homeschooling is a lonely road. Having friends to walk the path with you is worth it's weight in gold.

Link up

Length and Width

aliedwards

This week-end I started having some self-doubts. You know the kind. Where someone says something about a situation that explains why they do what they do, but at the same time,implying that their way of doing things is the only right way of doing it;  "btw, your way of doing it is wrong."

And it had to do with gathering info. I'm an info gatherer. It's what I do. If I read a book, I want to know who wrote it and what year it was published. So I look up the author. If the author's parents, or dog, or city look interesting, I look that up too. I'm not ADHD. I'm global. I see connections, make connections, love connections. It's what I do. But I digress.

 I do that too.

Anyway, I started feeling kind of guilty. 'Cause I do that (my husband is practically sure I'm a Jewish mother).  Like I'd collected too much info. I'd been too curious, and not tidy.

 I'd thought about the situation too deeply, and looked cluttered. Not hip at all. Not curious. Just...messy.

Oh well.

Yeah. Just oh well. Cause life's short. And I'm doing the length of my life pretty well.

Like, it's going fast, speed of sound fast.

And I want to do the width/depth part well, too.

All the stuff I've read about "how to have a successful blog" (yeah, I read up on that too, right, cause I have a blog and all) says have ONE topic per blog.

Like that's gonna happen.

But wait.

It has.

My blog topic is this:

LIFE, dude.

It started out about homeschooling. But the reality is that homeschooling is an extension of our faith and we've homeschooled so long that it's more than about school, or even education and is about

a lifestyle of learning, and faith and living.

Not just life. A WAY of life.

My husband, who is very linear and sequential and irritatingly charmingly logical makes jokes about  how disorganized I am all the time. Usually when I can't find something.

Seriously.

I'm like, Dude, I have entire universes of Venn diagrams in my head about tens, probably hundreds, maybe even thousands of topics. And to that he laughs.

And says, I'm incredibly productive and a very hard worker, but the fact that I don't have things alpha sorted and filed proves his point.

Well, whatev. He would live in a cave if he hadn't had the good sense to marry me (it would be the most highly organized, clean cave on the planet, but still...) so I guess it's great that I've saved  him from cave dwelling and he can alpha sort our important documents.(I am eternally grateful for his logical, organizational abilities. Truly). But back to my point....

I've been told a couple of times in the past couple of months that I dont' even use my education.

Hmm. I'm assuming what was meant was that I don't generate income with my degrees.

And that's true. But education, and even degrees, aren't always about money.

It's about digging deeper. Getting pushed, pushing yourself. Seeing what you can do, what you are capable of, what choices you have on the other side of them. And sometimes it's about giving what you have away so that people can benefit from what you have, without asking them to pay for it.

You know, like being the shoulders someone else is standing on.

Odd concept, I know. (believe me, I know. I've been called sucker by everyone and their uncle).

My point is. I like to dig. I want to know more. I want to go farther.

You know? Not just do the status quo.

It's what I want for my kids.

A long life. Deep and wide.

Homeschooling is just a part a that (said via Rizzo impersonation).

But a big part.

Giving our kids the time and space to look up things, follow bunny trails. To make connections. Time to think widely, along with quickly, and go deeply into a subject if that's what they need to do. Melding overview and mastery, rather than having one at the expense of the other.

I really like the line in the new Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe when the kids and the Beavers are running from the White Witch and they get to a summit and Susan says, "It's so big!" 

Mrs. Beaver responds, "It's the World, dear, did you expect it to be small?"

Susan, as she looks out over a vast area of snow and trees, says, "Small-er."

Insatsiable curiosity.

I believe that's what it takes to create a life that not only gets to the end of itself, we're all players on a timeline, baby, but has width and depth as well. I'm old enough at this point to realize that my way is not always best, it's not always tidy, it's hardly ever hip, but trying to create an impression rather than living fully and outloud; well, I just don't have time for that.  I learn and grow and find out about cool things by gathering. It's how I keep trying new things, even though the world and it's minions would like to burn us out (physically, spiritually, mentally) and leave us small and shriveled and small- like a dot, instead of expansive and generous, like a river.

Living the width of our lives. And I'll add depth. Great concept.

Any thoughts?

Winter Weather House Arrest

I don't know what the weather is like where you're at, but it's the dead of winter here. Cold; I mean really. Sub-zero and single digits coupled with ice and snow. I like the theory of winter and the thought of 4 seasons but it's done with a vengeance up here and, frankly, it's just not my thing.
I wonder why people moved here as pioneers. I mean, it's pretty brutal out here now, with running water and indoor plumbing and everything, but what we've read is that historically, families sold everything for the promise of land. Once they got here, they had no way to get back and often no where to go back to, since they'd sold it all for the promise of something else.
Dh read "The Children's Blizzard" this week-end between responding to students on-line and, weather nerd that he is, he found the weather in the book fascinating. We went to a lecture, sponsored by NOAA last year about if The Long Winter (by Ingalls Wilder) really was, and yes, it was. My response to all of this fascinating weather info and reality is to feel depressed. It intrigues me to a point, and would even more, if I didn't live in it (both stories took place in the Territories, right around where we reside). Give me green, blue and warm any day over white, glare and ice. Lots of warm.

Really, I'd rather be here:

photo courtesy of tripadvisor.com

What's the temp where you're at today?

Can a Post-Modern be Christian?

Still mulling over Lamott's writing. She  intrigues me  because she is a post-modern and a self-proclaimed Christian. She personifies for me the "Almost Christian." I'm not making any judgements on her salvation, seriously, but her Christian-eese, spiritualityismishness gives me pause. And here's why.

She writes and thinks like a post-modern. She talks about the family that she and Sam and Sam's father have created. But the deal is that Sam's father wasn't even in the picture till Sam was mid-elementary, he doesn't live with them, they get together every so often. Family, by Webster's definition means a social unit living under one roof. So,what's a little simple daily living among friends- or family? Well, a lot. Living under one roof together requires sacrifice, attention to detail, consideration, working out conflict, putting up with each other's morning breathe and irritating habits and modifying our own behavior so that we don't end up suicidal or homicidal.

Getting together for week-ends requires very little of any of that. When there is no financial, little social, almost no interpersonal relationship beyond  a walk in the park, you've really become more of a social group, not family. And there in lies the re-definition. If family is whomever, however, wherever, whenever you want, with little pesonal responsibility or modification, consideration or integrity, than what makes it family vs. the people that you work with or simply sit next to on public transit? And in a liberalishness way, that's the point. We are all part of the family.

But in a Christianish way it's not. Christianishness is personal. Very personal. Very defined. Very exact. Very specific. Marriage becomes a crucible, a place of sanctification and can only really, truly happen between two people who give up their narcissism (thereby definition, ruling out homosexual union as marriage) to become more than they were, not less.  Raising kids becomes a participation in creation, not a despair filled hope to god for the best, we were too late for an abortion this time accident.

And more than anything the divine is transcendent. It's mystical and magical and all of that. I'm all for fairy tales and myths and magical. I love that stuff. I mean, seriously, the Brothers Grimm were probably my great, great, great 14th cousins twice removed. This is good stuff, because archetypes tell us about humanity and that's important. But look. Uncle Jesus sits off to the side, like your uncle and mine did. Kinda not participating, smiling benignly , maybe slipping you a $20 every now and then. King Jesus is front and center. Transcendent, all powerful, really big living space. Post -modernism re-defines truth and thinks it's created something better. Truth, as in big, "T" Truth can not be re-defined. It's there, solid and firm, regardless of how we consider or define it. And really, God, the divine, isn't about archetypal humanity. It's about something bigger than that. Something that transcends humanity.

Post-modernism is all about the re-definition, the non-definition, the anti-definition. The fairy tale magic that lasts about as long as the story and then disappears. Christ cannot be re-defined into something manageable and containable. It goes against His nature (using masculine pronoun here, different discussion). He, and God and the Spirit are not definable, except in small little ways, not containable, not manageable. They-HE- are the ultimate REAL.

By definition, which post-modernism fights against, I can not make logical sense of someone holding the post modernist view and Christianity in their heads and hearts at the same time unless one or the other, or both, or greatly compromised. What do you think?


Find other thought provoking writing here:

Home

Descending the hill that defines the valley we live in, my youngest, holding my hand as we walked, flashing me her dimpled smile, looks at me, points to the house in the distance and says, "Will we ever leave Home?"

The way that she said "home" was more of a name than a place. My profound response was, "What?"

"Will we ever leave Home?" she asks.

"You mean our house?"

"Yes. Home."

"Maybe."

"I don't want to. I want to live at Home forever."

"What if God calls us to move?"

"Then if He does, I will go, but I won't want to. I love Home."

She is speaking of the place she's lived (except for 11 months after the house fire), since she was 11 months old. It sits in a small valley, surrounded by country. The descriptive that is shared by almost everyone who makes the challenging trek out here is "peaceful." (o.k., that and isolated, but perhaps they go together?). The house itself is becoming a place of beauty. The first floor is totally restored, functional, pleasing and light. The basement is so fundamentally different from what was is amazes me and everyone else who knew it in it's former life.The 2nd floor and attic wait patiently for their potential to be fulfilled. It is happening, bit by bit. they too are light and becoming places of beauty.

Home is a place, for sure and for certain. A physical place. A place to eat and think, read and live, argue, pay bills, deal with hardships, celebrate, live. It is also the place we draw from as we go through life. A place of security and rest. Often, more often than not perhaps, it is a a place to leave in anger and frustration, a place to react against, a place to flee from. Or a place to begrudgingly accept.

One of the most seductive promises of Jesus, for me anyway, is the promise of Home. The promise of a place to belong, to be loved and accepted, to be wanted and cherished, to grow in, to have enough, more than enough of what I want, and more importantly, need, that the world is no longer a scary, lonely place, but a place to walk through with confidence.

The promise of Home is seductive, but impossible to achieve in this world. My hopes and promises of Home, those I want to instill in my children, will always fall short, this side of Heaven. And the security that I want to instill in my children, perhaps because I have felt such profound insecurity, is that, at the very least, there is the Promise of Home. It is real. It is, in fact, the real thing.

New Year's Late Start

I did notice the New Year rolling around but, have I said before, I'm a muller? I have to have time to mull or I short out (hence, the year long shorting I did during the initial phase of the house re-build - no mulling time, just expensive decision after expensive decision to be made, coupled with a lot of physically hard work and the grief of watching my family dropping dead like flies). But I digress... Here's what I have so far....

2011 Re-cap

Greatest Lesson
Little by Little, One Travels Far (yeah, I knew that already, but this little house project has taken it to a whole new level. I'm hoping my fil reads this and smiles on my behalf!).
Hardest Thing
Patience. The list that has the what I wants and the list that has that what I must, don't always have a conversation. Visual and ordered living space have taken back-seat to getting the house re-paired. Even when we get something done (like the front porch) it is often dual-purposed (like a staging/work area).
Favorite Memory
Time with friends and family throughout the year. Friday afternoon's at Sandy's with the mom's from co-op laughing and sharing, the yearly visit with Mom & Dad N and Miss R's visits. FB mgs's from old friends ; ), Xmas brag letters and pics (love them!)
The 2nd day R was home for Christmas we all met at Sam's to rendezvous (dh had the boys, I had the girls, 2 separate cars, Christmas shoppping). We were all starving and don't love Sam's food ('cept the 12 yo- still digs the pizza), but were hungry enough to eat it anyway. Everyone was full of Christmas secrets and happy R was home and glad to be together. It was sweet.
What I loved most about 2011
Participating in the creation of something beautiful. Learning new skills. Teaching writing classes.

....2012 Pre-cap:

O.k. I've been mulling and sorting and pinteresting through this (Seriously, now. I'm visual, Pinterest is therapeutic helpful).

Mental

Reading: 52 books in 52 Weeks (weekly check-ins with the Hive book groupies and over at Robin's at 52 books in 52 weeks. I like Semicolon too (check the side-bar).
Writing Goals: I'm heading over to Robin's (My Two Blessings) for some inspiration. I'm also doing all of the homework that I assign my high school writing class. Beyond spring, I'm not sure. I have 3 books outlined. The one on homeschooling I'd like to get in E-book form by fall.

Physical
Moving: I've been walking again (Praise God!) 1-2 miles several times a week. My goal is 4 days walking a week.
More Moving: I'm putting together a list of calisthenics that I can without stressing my knee ( no lunges, lurches, squats or jogging)  or laying on my back (long story, but can't do it). You know, like the lists that go 1 -10 with different exercises that take about 15 minutes a day. Any ideas?
Logging: I'm also going back to writing down everything I eat in a day. And the no chip, chocolate or coffee (oh coffee, can I make it without you? Actually, I'm not sure I'm going cold turkey on coffee 'till Lent) rule is going back in to effect on Sunday. (Thanks for all of the G.S.goodies, Neil and Laura, Grandma & Grandpa! We've gone through the holidays on a chocolate high! ; )

Spiritual
I've thought long and hard about the B90 program but I've read through completely through the Bible about 6 times, twice in less than a month. B90 takes about 1 hour a day. So instead...I'm going to make a schedule by the quarter, like the prophets in one quarter, the gospels in another, etc.

Social
I'm meeting with a friend once a week. She went through the MFT program with me and is funny and wise and totally honest. We are getting together to talk and pray together. It actually works with my schedule, without leaving the kids hanging; mmiraculous.
Hebraic Fellowship- we are also meeting once a week to worship, study and fellowship. About 3 hours, food and a lot of prayer, laughter and intense study is involved.
TC and co-op.

House Re-build
Viking Man is currently re-building the door frames for the 2nd floor doors (9- we stripped, stained and poly'd them). Next is measuring and cutting the wood trim for the 12' kick boards, the 5" window, door and closet trim and affixing it all. Did I mention that dh had saved all of the trim we pulled from the 2nd floor and stored it in the barn? It's aired out reasonably well so next up is stripping, staining/painting and poly'ing it. We painted the trim to the downstairs basement bathroom white. I like the natural wood better so we might just go with a stain vs. paint. Once the trim is up in the basement, it is finished (though that might not be till next summer). We have a ton of mudding to do in the attic, and 3 sets of stairs to figure out (I have a whole board on "stairs" on pinterest. If you see anything of note, lmk!

Homeschool
I'm still suffering a Christmas hang-over and am so not ready for this semester. Nevertheless, we're forging ahead. I'm posting what we're using by kid/grade on my side-bar. Check it out ; )...though it might take a couple of days to get it posted!)

Gardening
Planning began a week ago (seed catalogs- yea!). We've expanded the garden and are going to try a whole bed of squash, using black plastic. We also put in garlic (true confessions, this week- it's so unseasonably warm, and I couldn't get to it this fall!). I'm hoping that the berry bushes we planted last year made it, and we put in more grapes. It seemed excessive at the time, and we did can over 75 quarts of grape juice and my epic 2 gallons of wine. Anyway, it's almost gone, so whatever we grow, we'll consume. I met a new friend who is totally into square foot/organic gardening and we have plans to get together to talk organic green stuff.

Projects
I've decided to pick 12 for the year (which might include re-build stuff). I have a few in mind, but want to get an organized file going. I'm assuming it will end up like my book list- start with a list and morph- adding and subtracting as I go.

Word for the Year
Occupo- Latin for "to seize" or "to occupy." It's clearly what we're doing to the house and the property and what the kids do as they school. It's kinda what I'm feeling the need to do in my own head. It's been so full of concern and grief and stuff ....time to move on to something else.

How 'bout you? What are your plans for 2012?

Opposing Views

This short could be titled either, "An Apologetic for Memory Work," or "Post Modernism's Big Win."



And this, "How to Make Your Pathology Work for You" (written very tongue in cheek- this is just brilliant.)

 

Envision and Do

The Time Warp Wife is having a 31 Days Challenge and today, Day 28 is a guest post on Dreaming Together. It struck a cord with me because, while my husband and I have done a lot of things ineptly in life, the one thing we rock at is dreaming. We are visionaries. And the other thing we do exceptionally well is do. We envision and then we put our hand to the plow. This explains the plethora of degrees and children that we have together, the number of times we've moved, the educational anarchy that we embrace, the house that we are working on and most of the details of our lives, including how we worship and study and the Messiah that we embrace. God's of wood and stone just don't give one ample enough opportunity to envision beyond oneself. It's so limited and narcissistic.

I was told by a friend several years ago that I am odd because most visionaries that she knew didn't "do" and most "do-ers" that she knew didn't envision. That just seems really bizarre to me cause I thought faith without works was dead and "submit yourselves one to another" were actual directives, not suggestions. The division of doers and visionaries in the current political climate of the American church seems to be a division of labor designed to stunt the growth of all involved, both queen/king and worker bee alike, perpetrated by the current business model that the American church has adopted. Those in "leadership" with the professional degrees are the ones that get to do the envisioning while the worker bees get to be the hands and feet. Leading to a lack of mutual accountability and the full development of the body beyond the head. My husband and I both have seminary degrees so maybe I've just seen too much. Maybe if I believed in the magical formula of higher ed more, or seminary more, or the head being the grand poombah of the church more I wouldn't be so cynical and keep writing these type of posts. And yet....

Back to the point of this post; what are we currently envisioning?
Our house being done. We've been sanding floors and walls and ceilings, texturizing, painting, washing out junk from clothes and brushes and rollers and talking about colors and what's next every spare moment. Our vision for this property from the time we moved here was to redeem, restore, rebuild and reclaim. We are doing that to the very best of our ability. I'm not sure what God has in store for this little acreage on the edge of nowhere but somehow we are part of it. And the character that is being built into us because of it- whew. Could we get it any other way? My goal for this week is to thank-God for the hardships that we endure. I am great at being grateful for the amazing God-answered prayers of finished but the hard won and exhausting producing "waits" or "not yets" or "suffer unto Me's," are more difficult for me.

An educational environment where study is worship; where people are challenged to go beyond themselves academically, educationally and ultimately spiritually. We have a very small circle, but we believe in being faithful in the small things (I count young children as "small things" all the time!)
A church environment that is more Biblical than American in culture. Have I mentioned being faithful in small things? It's what we do.
Writing. We have so many ideas and we are both teachers at heart. We are bursting at the seams with the ideas and are so hungry and yet we are stretched to the limit on time and money and resources with what we are doing. So far it's a "not yet" answer.

What are you envisioning? What are you doing?


Find more great reading at Time Warp Wife and at HHM.

The Problem with Freedom

I've been thinking about our homeschool. My homeschool. I've homeschooled for 21 years. I know what I want to accomplish and why. I know how to do it (mostly). These things have not always been true. What has always been true is that I wanted for my children something that I, as a child, and even young adult, did.not.have.

Freedom

What did I want that freedom to entail? Time. Time alone. Time for my kids to grow in to themselves without the stupidity and maturity stopping labels of too smart, too stoopid, too rich, too poor, too whatever. Time to follow bunny trails and embrace passions and learn and develop as spiritual beings along with their intellectual and social selves instead of being stunted and baby believers all of their lives. Freedom to hear the still small voice of God instead of being drowned in a cacophony of belligerent electronic and emotional and social distractions.

We've failed in a lot of things but in this one area, the area of giving our kids freedom, I believe that we have succeeded. Our kids have spent hours reading, listening to teaching and music CD's, grown in wonder and awe, understand how to create and learn and grow and have developed their belief in the concrete, the mystical, and the divine.

In that, dissatisfied creature that I am, I am content. I am not proud. I am satisfied. I have offered 5 people in the world something unique and fulfilling and awe-inspiring and, I believe, eternal.

What they choose to do with it, however, is not something that I can control. And that leads me to the point of this post. Freedom is easily lost, frittered away and unappreciated. Two things crowd out freedom, lawlessness and legalism.

Freedom is oft mistaken for lawlessness. True freedom is anything but. True freedom points the way to something greater but those who are free and aren't disciplined end up rebellious and ungrateful, entitled and lacking the self-control necessary to maintain or to create.

On the other hand, freedom is often, because of our very human nature, tied up in a box and restrained. We want to set controls, make rules, define, clarify and develop. Everything is created twice and those who envision something extraordinary and beyond the norm frequently get hung up on the nitty-gritty necessities of making a way in the world, the nuts and bolts, tpaying the bills. Nitty-gritty snuffs out freedom just as fast as devil may care lawlessness.

Because we are not raising children, but adults, and ultimately eternal beings, we get to a point in our parenting where we let go. The kids, adults, souls that we've stewarded make their own choices, their own mistakes, and live their own lives. Outcomes are not my responsibility, faithfulness is. I've faithfully, along with the dedicated care and provision of my husband, given my kids freedom. Freedom to think and feel and live how they are called. And if they stumble in to lawless rebellion or legalistic life-sucking forms that diminishes their call, it is their choice and ultimately, their responsibility. Perhaps they did not understand the gift they they've been given, the sacrifices made, the hardships endured to offer them this precious gift. Perhaps they wanted something else. There are voices, and  always have been, that have ridiculed, badgered and scoffed at what we've offered our children. The voices, loud and bitter, were loud andoften enough heard that my children noticed. Perhaps the siren songs of other wooed them.  It's not mine to speak to.

My vision for homeschooling has been that my kids would embrace  freedom, revel in it, dance unabashedly because of what they've been afforded. In that hope, despite the lack of assurance of outcomes, we continue. We continue to steward well what we can give.

Back to D.C.

I have a guest blogger today; my oldest son. He just returned from  a 2 week expedition to both Washington D.C. and Atlanta, GA, where he participated in 2 fantastic leadership programs. Today he is sharing about Teenpact's Back to D.C. program. Stay tuned 'cause later this week he'll be writing about Challenge. 

Go here for more information about TeenPact Leadership Schools and to find a state class near you! 

      ‘Back to D.C’ is one of several alumni events for the Teen Pact program. It takes place in Washington D.C. in mid September. But what is Back to D.C. about? Why would one to three dozen students want to travel hundreds of miles to get behind on schoolwork and drug all over the nations capitol? The answer can be found in the simple question: what are their priorities?

       One might be surprised, when they looked at the numbers and realized just how small of a number of American citizens actually care about how their government works. A lot of people theses days are ignorant about the details of how a bill is passed. Many don’t even realize that they are ignorant, or they simply don’t care.  Part of Teen Pact’s mission is to fight this ignorance; to educate young people about how their government works; to get them to care about their country and where it is going. It doesn’t work to just let the politicians take care of everything. Because, just like anyone else, the candidates rarely know what’s best for more than a few people at a time, and even if they do, they might not care about you.

       This is why young people are taking the time to become Teen Pact alumni and make the pilgrimage to their nation’s capitol. For four days they attend lectures, which will range from the topics of clear communication to running a successful campaign. During this time they will also live up to the message blazoned on their shirts: We came, we saw, we walked; A lot. A mock presidential campaign is also in order, as well as getting intimate with the local metro system. Not to be forgotten is the chance to play ultimate Frisbee in front of the Washington monument. And what trip to D.C would be complete without a chance to get inside the capitol building itself. It’s a chance to learn, to grow, and make friends form all over the nation. You get to walk until you’re legs hate you, and do all sorts of touristy things while still looking professional.    

       Washington D.C. is truly an amazing place. The capitol mall is huge; the buildings are big and beautiful; and the water tastes like tax-payers dollars! Don’t ask how I know this. Just go and find out for yourself. Parents are welcome to go as well, and see the things their progeny are seeing. Because in politics, everyone should be a student: no one trusts the experts anyway. It’s an opportunity everyone should take. To go and grow as a person; learn as a citizen; witness their government in action; meet the people they’ve elected; and to have some honest to goodness fun!

On Becoming a Better Teacher

There was a recent thread over at my fav on-line hang-out about "what has made you a better teacher." It's a great question and one I hope lots of homeschoolers take time to think about. Lots of folks homeschool and yet I doubt that many of them think of themselves as teachers or educators. Perhaps they aren't vocationally (I'm not), but I do believe that if homeschoolers took the time to think of themselves in a more professional manner, they'd have an easier time of it on many different levels (by that I mean a whole lot- probably best left for a whole separate post).

To get to the question.

What has made me a better teacher?

1. Actively Reading, thinking, writing and growing as a person and as an educator. Being intentional about learning about education. Teaching is a small part of being an educator, imho. Teaching is to education as drawing is to art. The foundation but not the whole. I've read scores of books on education. I've written scores of articles on education. I've thought for scores of hours about education, have written a 90 page thesis on it and I'm constantly on the look-out for ways in which to gather more education myself and to provide educational opportunities for my kids. I don't worship education but I do believe that to study is worship.
 Also I am personally invested in growing. I convey that as I teach.  The point of teaching is to engage the child, to enlarge and expand their understanding, to lead them to a more mature place, be that intellectually, spiritually, emotionally, socially, physically. If I'm not doing that personally, how can I ever hope to do that for someone else? It helps that I am married to a polymath that breathes ideas. He is always challenging me to think and grow about areas that I am not naturally inclined towards. I do the same for him. We are iron, sharpening iron. So is my on-line book club, so are several of my friends. Who is challenging you to grow? In what areas are you growing?

2. Creating educational opportunities and environments. In the past 21 years of homeschooling I have started co-ops, academic class days, run day and drama camps, brought TeenPact to our state, led workshops for kids and parents and sent my kids to the ends of the earth (literally). Working with others to create opportunities not only builds and strengthens the community around you but gives you a great sense about what actually educates and what is time wasting twaddle.

3. Teaching groups of kids. The more I teach, the more mastery as a teacher I experience. Why? Because I loathe staring at a group of bored, miserable students. If you are wasting their time, they'll let you know (usually politely). As I've grown as a teacher, I have find myself less about cajoling the kids into learning and more about setting expectations of excellence and insisting that they rise to meet the challenge.

4. Spending time in Creative Pursuit. I have grown as a teacher by taking time to do the things that energize me as a person; reading, mulling, gardening, writing, Bible Study, talking with my husband, doing movie, curriculum, book reviews, etc.

5. Participation in our Beit Midrash Bible Study. This study (which has morphed over the past 5 years from a Bible Study to a Fellowship Group) has taught me to think and express analytically and critically. We read, make observations, make application. It is a not an easy process and one that few adults (let alone kids) engage in naturally.

6. As I've said Ad nauseam, having a clearly defined pedagogy. This doesn't necessarily mean that you align yourself with  someone elses thang. It means you define, for yourself, what your pedagogy is. Mine is basically neo-classical with a lot of "classical" unschooling thrown in. More than anything it is a life-style of learning. You can read more about that here.

7. Realizing that I am not raising kids, or adults, but that I am raising spiritual beings that have eternal souls. Education isn't all about grades or scholarships or honor or prestige. It's about stewarding the life and capabilities of the people God has entrusted to our care so that they can live the life and do the work that God has called them to. I'm an ambitious person with some very intelligent kids. It's my natural inclination to want my kids to "win," to "be the winners." The God-reality is that God calls us to a life of servant hood and humility. Put in that context, my kids gifts are not theirs so that they can "win." Their gifts are there for them to honor God with, to serve His people, to bring glory to His name. That might mean winning, it might not.

What do you do to grow as a teacher and as an educator?