I am so excited because I have been given permission to do one of my favorite things: SPEAK LIFE!! In some ways that is a loaded concept, but in other ways it’s not. In our monthly newsletter, I will be diving into topics relevant to moms in general, and homeschool moms in particular. I know you. Even if you do not know me. I care about you, and I am honored to travel this homeschool journey with you.
Honestly, I don’t even know where to begin. My mind is spinning with topics I want to hear from you about. I want to go there. So where do I begin?
How about if I begin with the reality of being a homeschool mom. Who gets us anyway? Whether we’ve dreamt of homeschooling for years or are suddenly finding ourselves thrown into being with ALL of our children, ALL day, EVERY day, IT’S A LOT … to put it mildly. No free childcare for us. (But then again, nothing is really free.) The reality of 24/7 childcare is overwhelming in and of itself, but then add the responsibility of educating our children?!! This takes “overwhelming” to a completely new level: stress, anxiety, panic, exhaustion, FEAR . . . and on and on. See I do know you. And I do care.
I get it. You need life, energy, hope, guidance, peace. So today, these are my life-giving words for you:
“YOU CAN DO THIS”
Do you believe me? I know you can, and I have a few suggestions to bring some fresh perspective to all of the not-so-good, yet real, feelings that I just mentioned.
While you (and your children’s father) are ultimately fully responsible for your little people, YOU ARE NOT ALONE.
It’s okay to SIMPLIFY. Stick to quality reading, writing, and arithmetic every day. Weave in the rest as you are able.
Remember: YOU ARE THE BOSS. Be a boss. Don’t let anyone tell you how to educate your children - not even the experts.
Create a LEARNING ENVIRONMENT in your home. Field trips and hands-on education are amazing.
CHARACTER TRAINING trumps all else. Just look at the world around us. What’s lacking? Character.
SMILE a genuine smile. This is a choice, and it is contagious. Choose gratitude and smile because you are blessed. Blessed to have children. When smiling feels hard, do it anyway. The simple act of smiling will shift your atmosphere.
I would love to delve into each one of these points in a lot more detail. So that’s what I plan to do in future “Speak Life” columns of our monthly newsletter. I hope none of those suggestions feel burdensome because that is the last thing you need: another list of “Things to Do or Be”. Perhaps these ideas are just reminders of things you already know, but reminding yourself everyday will certainly help you over the humps, especially as you are gearing up to begin your new school year.
I have an idea: Let’s start a “Speak Life” movement. We may be surprised at how negative thoughts come so easily, and it may take a little effort to learn to speak life. We get to speak life into ourselves first, using both our inner voice and our outer voice.
Here are some things to tell yourself that will speak life:
“This dinner was amazing.”
“That lesson was a disaster, but that’s okay, we’ll try again tomorrow.”
“I feel so tired, but I am grateful for all my blessings. I”ll get to bed a bit earlier tonight.”
“Even though the house is a wreck, I got that project finished.”
“Who needs lesson plans? I know my children are working hard on their lessons.”
“Mommy needs a break from the noise, so you guys get to go outside and play.”
“I know it seems like every day is so hard, but I refuse to give up. I know the work and sacrifice are worth it.”
As we learn to speak life into ourselves, then we are better equipped to speak life into others, especially our family. My vision is that we would become a community of homeschool families that speak life into each other. Take a minute to imagine that. That’s the stuff of transformation: magical, miraculous, mysterious transformation.
I hope you’ll join me on the journey to becoming “Speakers of Life”. Feel free to send me a message at krisspeakslife@gmail.com.
Speaking life,
Kris