Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Of Spring and Learning....

 Each morning I wake up early to the sound of birds outside my window. I hurry to pull on my jeans, grab a random shirt from the drawer in our still darkened bedroom, and find my running shoes. Then I slip out into the awakening day and enjoy all that nature has to offer. Some mornings the 11 year old joins me. He is usually still clinging to sleep and rather disoriented as he puts on his shoes, but once he is outside, he is transformed. His face lights up, his eyes open, and he pulls anyone of several bird calls out of his pocket, puckers up his whistle, and begins communicating with his feathered friends. He never misses a thing, every bird, every new flower, the clouds, it all draws him. He is a delight to walk with. Inside, he sometimes is a stubborn, preadolescent man-child, but out here, he is almost always joyful. Homeschooling works better out here too, so when the weather is nice, we take our books and off we go. The 13 year old is not quite so enthusiastic, but he too enjoys a nice sunny day, as long as it is after 7:00 a.m. 


Learning at its finest.
Red Admiral Butterfly

Oh, I remember Pre Algebra! Even though I've taught it 6 times, it still makes me cringe.
A ski shack roof and Robinson Crusoe! What could be better?
 We serve a marvelous God. And I am always thankful that His plan for our life has been (and is) to educate these children of ours. Often it is lovely, sometimes it has been daunting, but we are  not in this alone. God loves them more than we ever could and He has made each one of our seven children, unique individuals, that respond back to Him in their own unique ways. I love seeing that extended into children-in-law and grandchildren. Life is not easy, often it does not look like the pictures and impressions we make, but there is a steady hand that guides us, and we would not be here without it. "As for me, I trust in You, O Lord, I say, "You are my God", my times are in Your hand." Psalm 31:14,15.

1 comment:

  1. Another lovely post. Spring is good for the soul, isn't it. I love these pics of Rob and Pat...it brings back memories of homeschool adventures in my day :)

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