Flexibility

I love to be reminded of little things that turn out to be so important. Take for example a key. You know, like the key to your house or car. Such a simple little thing. Simple shape and structure. No moving parts, nothing at all intricate or even particularly interesting about it. You never sit around thinking about your keys...until you need them. When you need to get into your car suddenly that tiny piece of metal becomes very important indeed. You wonder how you could have ever taken it for granted.

So lately I was reminded of two important things that are "key" to survival as a homeschooling parent....heck, any parent really. The first is flexibilty. Today a friend pointed out to me that I was being flexible. She said it was the mark of a good teacher. I must admit I felt a bit sheepish. Since I had seriously considered being as rigid as a wooden board on this day.

It was thundering and lightning outside this morning. We were attempting to do our lessons, but every so often we'd hear a low rumble of thunder. Lane was becoming increasingly distracted from his math work. I sighed. I not so patiently reminded him what it was he supposed to be doing. As I mulled over the things I had planned for today and how we'd probably have to fight to get it all done, a lightbulb turned on in my mind. It was a thunderstormy day...why not scrap my lesson plans and just watch some educational videos on thunderstorms and then make our our writing lesson about lightning too? Would not that make the day easier on all of us?

There you have it. That is what we did. On a yucky day we all watched and listened to the storm outside and learned about what caused it to be that way. Flexibility made our day more bearable. How great is that?

Second, and most importantly, another friend (Melissa) reminded me of the importance of trusting God. I wrote her a few days ago, absolutely beside myself. I was struggling with stubborn attitudes. I didn't know what to do. My oldest child and I were butting heads. She told me to try prayer. Duh. So simple. So basic. It is exactly what the Lord would want me to do. He wants us to come to him with all our burdens and not rely solely on ourselves. So before we began our lessons, my sons, daughter, and I prayed and asked God to help us and be with us throughout our day. The result? More focused attitudes from the kids and a more calm and conscientous me.