Wow. Twenty-two years ago I got married. I worked full-time for two and a half years and then quit when I had my baby. When that baby was four we started homeschool kindergarten for fun. If it didn’t work, we hadn’t lost anything, right? But it did work. We both loved it. Three more babies came along and as they grew they joined our school room. The oldest baby graduated. That seemed like a good time to put one of the babies into Christian school for high school. And the next year, another baby started her 9th grade year in the Christian school. The plans were to keep the last baby home until 9th grade. But, alas, I was not counting on just how lonely that baby would be without her siblings. How much she desired structure in her education. And how worn out and tired I was of homeschooling. And, so here we are, the last baby left our home this morning for her first day of school.
I thought that I would homeschool all of my kids through high school. But God directed us differently. There are a lot of emotions and questions that go along with a decision like this one. Are we giving up? What will my homeschool friends think? How did time move so quickly? Can’t I go back for just a day?
I recently read a book called “Who Moved My Cheese?” I highly recommend it for anyone who is dealing with a lot of change in their lives. It is a short little book that can be read in a half hour. I got it from the library. It is a little parable that opened my eyes to the necessity of embracing change and moving on. Sitting and mourning for days gone by is not helpful to anyone. It is important to follow God’s leading and then move forth with purpose and confidence.
Change is a constant in our lives. Some changes are big and some are small. Not cooperating with change doesn’t mean that change will not occur. Of course, there may be a period of mourning and sadness, but in time we need to make a conscious decision to stop looking at the past and set our eyes on the path in front of us.
And, hey, I will always be a homeschool mom at heart. I will always be learning new things and ready to teach anyone who wants to hear what I have learned. It is just who I am.