Decisions

Sometimes I think about how easy it would be if I just sent my kids to public school. Every day, when that big yellow bus came by, off they would go and I would be free for the day. I could spend all of my time with my 2 youngest children, going to the library, grocery shopping without my son, sewing, having a quiet chat with another adult on the phone - the list could go on and on. There would be no more headaches that stem from choosing which curriculum will best prepare my children for their future in this world. And there would be no more cost from purchasing said curriculum.

However, when all the cards are laid on the table, I really have no other choice but to continue down the path in which God has directed me for these children with which He has blessed us. I know this is the calling He has placed on my life, and I am thankful every day that He gives me the tools in which to follow through with this calling.

When I think of someone that I do not really know teaching their beliefs and philosophies to my children, I cringe. Putting them in the hands of a bus driver and on a bus that is not really safe, I don't like it. And when I think of school shootings and the possibility of never seeing my children come home, I just can't do it.

So each day, no matter how little sleep I have had from the night before, I wake to 4 waiting children. And each day, I wrack my tired brain over what they need to learn for this day. So as not to tire or bore them, I try every day to make our learning time together fun and exciting. My goal is to teach them in such a way as to leave them wanting more and looking toward tomorrow to continue where we left off.

Who says school needs to be at the table or a desk? Who says it should be from a textbook? Who says it needs to be 9 months out of the year with 3 months off for the summer? Who says a curriculum is better because it cost more? Why can't I find all of our school books from my local library? Why can't we take a field trip every week, or go on vacation in October? Why be normal?

And so we continue down this road of higher education, with our ultimate goal being to please The One who has called us to walk this path, to teach my children the things they need to know to be "in the world but not of the world", to instill in them a love of learning, and to have them seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge.