Homeschooling with a Meek and Quiet Spirit by Teri Maxwell book review

I thought this was a really good read. 

First, It’s short; you could probably finish it in the doctor’s waiting room. This is great for the busy mom.

She does speak to the important job of the homeschooling mom in her preface, “There isn’t a more determined, dedicated set of women in the entire world! You have chosen an unpopular, difficult path that comes with little outside encouragement. Yet, you have set your face on obedience to the Lord and what you know is best for your children no matter what it costs your personally!”(9)

But, she has some good, honest insight into the heart and mind of a mom, not just those that homeschool. She speaks to our inclination to dwell in states of worry, anger, fear, anxiety and frustration. I think many moms would appreciate this text.

She encourages all those who are seeking Christ in their vocation, when she writes “…when Jesus Christ calls one to a task, He can also give the enthusiasm to go with it.” (13)

She encourages moms to recognize sin and call it what it is, confess and receive absolution. Perhaps my favorite quote from this book is  “Godly sorrow truly grieves over sin, confesses and repents of it. Then godly sorrow puts a smile on its face and walks in the joy of ‘no condemnation’!” (52)

What a beautiful thing forgiveness is.

Maxwell puts this in opposition to the idea of worldly sorrow, such as “…disappointment in your spirit that the reality of homeschooling didn’t match the ideal.” (16) 

These words spoke to me as I considered my moments of despair most often come from a feeling of failure that is directly related to my own high expectations not being met, which then leads me to feel that I have failed in some way to achieve the perfection that I had perceived possible. The root of this is my own PRIDE.

She says this well, “When negative emotions come over me, it is usually because I am thinking about myself.” (109)

This is not an advice book, or homeschooling book with curriculum suggestions, but simply a book that shares her personal journey in the search of contentment. It is hard work that we do as moms, and homeschooling adds to that work load, but we can, with the help of God, be content in the work that we do.

You can get a copy of Homeschooling With a Meek and Mild Spirit here.

Why Marriage Matters For Girls

The wealth of a classical education is that we can learn from the foolishness of those who came before us by reading about them. In my quest to improve my own education, I've been working my way through The Well-Educated Mind.

Well, okay, that's a flat out lie.

The truth is I've been working my way through the first novel in the reading list, Don Quixote, and slowly at that.

But, I stopped reading this morning as I came across a quote that struck me. Quixote, in his adventures, comes across a man who tells him a story. In this story, the man tells of his friend.

"He loved a wealthy farmer's daughter, one of his father's tenants, and she was so beautiful, modest, intelligent and virtuous that nobody who knew her could decide which of these excellent qualities was most outstanding in her. And they raised Don Fernando's desires to such a pitch that he decided that to have his way with her and conquer her virginity he'd give her his word of marriage..."

The story teller goes on to explain that his friend suggests that going away for a time would be the solution to his problem. The young man agrees and encourages him to do so.

"By the time he told me all this he had already , as later became apparent, enjoyed the girl's favours as her husband, and was looking for an opportunity to reveal all without having to pay the consequences, fearful as he was of what the Duke his father would do when he found out about his folly."

So, the story teller encourages his friend to go back home with him to get away from the temptations of this girl who so drove his desires that he was willing to marry her to quench the fire. But, then, when they had arrived at his home, he discovered that his friend had already taken the girl as a wife (without putting forth the necessary price of marriage).

This next quote in the story is pivotal to the point here:

"It happened, then, that since love in young men is usually not love at all, but lust, which, since gratification is its sole aim, ceases to exist as soon as it is satisfied, and what had looked like love turns back because it cannot go any further than the limits fixed for it by nature, which does not establish any limits for true love... what I'm trying to say is that as soon as Son Fernando had his way with the farmer's daughter his desires abated and his ardour cooled, and, if at first he'd pretended to want to leave so as to cure his desires, now he really did want to leave so as not to put them into effect."

Did you get all that?

The lust of men "gratification is its sole aim"
The lust of men drives them to "give her his word of marriage"
The lust of men "ceases to exist as soon as it is satisfied"
The lust of men looks like love, but "what had looked like love turns back" as soon as it is satisfied.
The lust of men is "abated" and "cooled" as soon as it is satisfied.

Men are naturally inclined to burn for women, so much so that he would sacrifice anything to have her, even marry her. Marriage during the writing of Don Quixote and throughout most of history meant for a man that he was bound to provide for her and her children for the rest of his life.

But, once he has had her... the desire that drives him to make that sacrifice is "abated" and "cooled" and "what had looked like love turns back".

Once a man has had a woman, she is left with nothing to offer him that would secure her protection and provision, and he is left with a desire that is not for her, but instead a desire to avoid her.

Uber Organized Laundry

This.

is a fabulous idea.

I love it.

But, I'll never do it.

So, this mom takes all of her daughter's laundry and as it comes out of the dryer, she matches up the sets (her child only has sets) and folds them together in a large zipper style clear plastic bag.
When her daughter is getting dressed in the morning, she does not have to sort through a closet or dresser to find all the pieces of her favorite outfits because ALL she has to do is grab a bag.

I love this idea.

In fact, when I pack for long trips, I have done this exact thing with my younger children's outfits and even labeled each bag with a name and weekday assignment before putting them into the suitcase. I did this to prevent certain children from crying that they had no pants to wear after two days of vacation. It was a survival mechanism.

It's great.

But, for me, it must be filed under the category of things I would do

IF

I only had one child.

Some things just have to be let go.

This is one.