Homeschool Vertigo!!

Just for the record, I’ve never experienced vertigo. But experts say that when it ‘hits’ you, you’re unable to distinguish between up and down. If a pilot happens to be flying an airplane in fog and experiences vertigo, it can result in the pilot ‘pulling up’ right into the ground.

From my perspective, there seems to be a pandemic of vertigo in the homeschool world. It’s a condition that affects mainly homeschool parents during the months of January say…through December.

Actually, I believe it’s a relatively NEW disorder, because I don’t think parents have always suffered from it. It used to be that a mom and dad’s job was to train their children for life. They taught their children vital skills that they would need to function in a home of their own one day. They were taught the value of a dollar, to work hard, to persevere, and to make do. They were also taught about God, their need for a savior, and what it means to be the church on earth…important stuff.

But somewhere along the way, advanced algebra and applied biology was invented and vertigo began to creep in. Instead of all the things parents THOUGHT were important, now other experts voiced what THEY THOUGHT was more important. And they said it louder. As a result, parents began to doubt and second guess their own ideas and convictions.

Maybe it isn’t enough to know how to work hard, to care for a family, and to be salt and light in the world. Maybe there really are more important things that need to be taught.

Now, we’re beginning another school year and hardly know which way is up. We’re in a fog surrounded by opinions and experts, each with convincing arguments as to what our children should know to ensure success in the future.

Why just a couple of weeks ago a homeschool mom from Texas called me who was suffering an acute case of homeschool vertigo.

“I just need some advice,” she declared. She went on to describe her teenage son who struggled in math, and she wondered if she was failing him, and how he’d ever get into college or make his way in the world.

I knew she just wanted to talk because I could hardly get a word in as she continued to share more of the story.

“He feels like he has been called to preach the word of God…and others tell me  how sharp he is…but I don’t know…we’re looking at small Christian colleges…but he just doesn’t like or get math.”

“It sounds like you’re doing a good job,” I said. “The truth is I’m not a math guy either. I took advanced calculus in college, and I couldn’t solve a simple algebra problem today if my life depended on it. I can’t even count back change the correct way. My wife has tried to teach me…but I can’t do it! ”

We talked a little more, and the more she talked, the more obvious it became to me and to her of what was really important to her and her son. The fog may have still been there, but now she knew which way was UP.

The hard thing for her to do next was to make decisions based on…UP. It’s the same with so many other moms and dads I talk to all over the country. They come up to me all uptight and often in tears. We talk about what matters and what doesn’t. They shake their head in agreement and often reiterate what really matters. The vertigo begins to fade and for a few brief moments, the sun peeps through the clouds and everything is so clear and simple.

“Yeah, that’s true,” they agree.

BUT as we wrap things up, the doubts creep back in, the fog thickens, and vertigo sets back in.

“But, I just don’t know,” they say in bewilderment.

“Yes, you do know,” I insist. You just told me. You KNOW which way is UP, but you’re still listening to THEM.”

THEM has such a confident, enticing voice that makes so much sense. It sounds right and just about everyone else seems to follow its advice. THEM has charts, statistics, and testimonies of success. Others will look at you like you’re a right-wing lunatic for not following THEM’S plan.

But THEM is causing the vertigo. THEM thinks like the world and gets its wisdom from the world, calling what is important, non-important, or maybe more accurately calling what is NOT as important, important. You with me?

THEM is killing us and leading us down a path of hardship and death. But you don’t have to listen to THEM. God has made you smart enough to raise your children. What you know to be right IS RIGHT!!!

What you need to do Mom and Dad is act on what you KNOW to be important no matter what anyone else thinks or says. If you believe it’s more important to know how to keep a checkbook than to be able to work advanced algebra, then do what you know to be important.

If you believe that it’s more important to enjoy your children (whereby training them to enjoy you and their children) than it is to score a 100% on every subject, then DO what you know to be…UP.

Be Real,

Todd