Typical...

Wow, a full three weeks and I kind of dropped of the face of the earth. Not literally, but about in every other sense of the word. I've had about as bad a period of 'blues' as I've had in a while. And during that time, I felt that "midnight of the soul" hunger for some kind of hope, even as my conscious mind related all the obvious things that were going well. Thank God that patience from my wife and a word from the Pastor helped me snap out of it. I won't accept that periods like that are necessary, only that when they happen they can teach us that faith has to outlast feelings, and this time it did again.

Now to happier thoughts - my new theme song.

Mute Math is a hybrid Christian / alternative - well I hate labels, so let's just say they're awesome musicians. I love anything that breaks boundries, and even though their lead singer is a dead ringer for Sting /early Peter Gabriel, I'm loving their electronic / pop sound. The song that I have been wearing out is their single "Typical". Just the first few lines speak directly to my (and I'm sure many others) current state of mind...

Come on, can I dream for one day?
There's nothing that can't be done
But how long should it take somebody
Before they can be someone

Cuz I know there's got to be another level
Somewhere closer to the other side
And I'm feelin' like it's now or never
Can I break the spell of the typical?

And that became my mantra / prayer in this past week. Whatever happens, today, Lord, let it not be typical. Not predictable or run of the mill. Let this day be a breakthrough day in my relationships, work, my faith, my finances - SOMETHING. And considering that I had the same stresses today as many and still found the time to take care of some major things that were nagging me, I have to say that prayer was answered. Maybe it won't be thunder and lightning from the sky, but I'm sure that each day I'm more focused on His will for my family and my life, will not be a typical day. May your days also be anything but typical.

The kids also did something atypical - a video podcast. It's at our webpage at web.mac.com/allenpaul and also on Itunes. If you only knew how many takes it took just to make a pizza...Emeril can keep the job, and the iron chefs too. :-)

Looking unto the hills,
acp

Pushing through....

We returned to our Park group today and I felt so behind. Not because of some assignments, but just because obviously the other families were up on the current events of the group. It was tempting not to join this year in an attempt to save time, but again I have to look at the whole picture - Naomi is now helping create an environmental club with her friends, and both kids were able to get homeschool ID cards. The support group helps us find things like that that are not necessarily part of anyone's curriculum. Even though I'm still the only homeschooling dad of the group, there are other fathers that come around so I'm not the only man standing around, which helps a bit. I know the gender thing isn't the most important thing, but I do feel more and more a need to find other men to network with.

Not much else this morning, will check in later.

Looking unto the hills,
ap

What a day...

...and not just for me. I guess you can say we are "churched out" for today. We've spent a couple of days just relaxing and recovering from the week.

Friday was another great day at enrichment - I was able to volunteer in Naomi's ceramics class and help her to craft a clay bowl. They'll dry and fire them over the weekend and she'll be able to paint it next week. Saturday was spent trying to un-virus Christopher's computer...makes me even more wary about his computer time if he's downloading unfamiliar things... and preparing for Sunday Service. The kids have become "Brain Quest" fanatics - they spent all evening quizzing each other on factoids - which I can't say I object to. They could find many worse things to drive each other crazy with. Another plus was the arrival of Marcus' fraction overlays - in minutes we were practicing equivalent fractions, something that I couldn't do with my "homemade" versions. (Sometimes saving money is losing time!)

Oh yes, and we spent a lot of time watching "Travel Channel" - as a break during the day it's been nice to turn on the TV and watch "Passport to Europe w/ Samantha". She does a tour guide look at several European cities, which I promptly had the kids look up. While it wasn't a unit I was planning, it fits into our daily schedule and provides some independent study opportunities for the kids. The more they know about the world, the more they'll be able to function and relate to all the international news they hear from day to day.


Personally, I'm still working on that relaxation vs. procrastination thing - I know I need the rest today but it seems there's always a reason why I should be moving. Perhaps it's the fact that time is moving so fast. High School is now a distant memory at 15 years past, and college is quickly moving into the same place in the rear view mirror. So standing still sometimes feels like moving backward. I know there is so much to be accomplished, and yet I have to rely on bursts of energy and synergistic days where everything falls into place to feel like I got anything done. But maybe that's the way all of us have to operate - knowing that it's mostly 3 steps forward and two steps back - while realizing that progress has still been made.

I hope to connect with other homeschool dads in the near future. Feel free to write or comment on any entry - I'm always open to network and share with other fathers that are taking the lead in their children's future.


Looking unto the hills,
acp