September 14, 2006: The Deliciousness of Homeschooling

Tia references this blog in a post today. I was especially hit by this quote about that never-ending socialization question. The author is talking about how unsatisfactory those conversations always are; how, as a homeschooler, you never even come close to speaking your piece when someone says, "But what about s_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _?"

"Rarely in these encounters is there an opportunity to explain in glorious depth what home education is REALLY like: the freedom to explore, the excitement of following rabbit trails, the lack of testing or administrative pressure, the absence of certain social pressures, the luxury of time in which to immerse in a subject, the spontaneity, the opportunities for hands-on learning, the lightheartedness. It's a really delicious orange, see. But if you're expecting it to taste like apple, then of course you're going to look askance at it."

OH, can I please MEMORIZE this to say next time? The "glorious depth!" The "luxury!" The delicious-ness!! I know this feeling so well: the inadequacy one feels when "defending" homeschooling. How many times have I given a weak response to people (at church, especially), when they say, "I could never do that!" when in fact I mean to say, in my heart, "Homeschooling is not a chore nor a sacrifice. Homeschooling is the essence of being a parent. Homeschooling is nibbling parenthood to the very bone to get all the good stuff. "