Yesterday, we celebrated fathers.
I trust you had a great day doing it!
For many people it is a wonderful day…
laden with gratitude for a man that led and taught them well…
and possibly continues to do so.
Still others…
struggle with painful not-so-swell memories and a nearly nonexistent figurehead.
For some…
there simply wasn’t a father present at all.
I happen to be blessed with the greatest Dad ever!
And a husband that is equally impressive.
Whatever your personal experience…
know that fathers and father figures are integral.
Those that don’t have a healthy model…
can certainly think of a teacher…
a coach…
a neighbor…
a friend…
that helped to fill the gap and stepped up to the calling.
I hope that not only yesterday…
but each and every day…
you express gratitude for these individuals.
They work hard…
sacrifice much…
stabilize always.
I will be talking more about fathers in August…
the month of my dear Dad’s birth!
Now for the rest of today…
this week…
and possibly next…
SUMMER SPECTACULAR!
Several of you e-mailed…
asking if I was “really going to share HOW to do something like this.”
The answer is yes!
It’s always yes, by the way…
what needs to happen in addition to being given information…
is your personal, introspective look…
at how this applies to you…
and what you need to do to adjust, change, grow.
We all have to evaluate these things…
regularly.
Regardless of the event…
and the level of commitment that is being requested or required…
the tyranny of good vs. better vs. best…
is ever present.
Sometimes you fail to choose the wisest option.
In which case…
you simply learn whatever you can from your mistake
and get ready to engage again!
One of the things that you must know…
is your “why.”
Why are you doing this…
why do you feel that you should…
why are you committing time and effort to this event…
or venue.
What happens…
especially in the case of many home educators…
is that a “crisis” of sorts…
causes you to choose the home education option.
And in many cases…
you never get to the point where you evaluate…
the “why” behind your decision to do what you do.
The same really does hold true for other educational choices…
and most of LIFE!
Developing a family culture and identity is inclusive of evaluating choices…
events…
commitments.
“Parents must get off the conveyor belt twice; once, mentally/emotionally and the other time, physically/behaviorally. Unfortunately, many people attempt to do the second one first, and then wonder why their results are not what they hoped. In other words, they teach the concepts to their children but fail to fully live and exemplify them. They say and do things that undermine the phases and other important principles of Leadership Education because they do not intrinsically trust the process, and are not fully implementing it.” ~Oliver and Rachel DeMille, Leadership Education
So…
before we really get “into the throes”…
of evaluating involvement and contributions…
to events and causes…
let’s start here.
Why do you want to “get involved?”
What are your gifts and talents?
What types of life experiences do you possess?
Do these experiences meet a need…
that is currently looking to be filled?
How will this affect the entire family?
How long will the commitment be?
Does this align with my dreams…
my objectives…
my goals…
where educating…
and modeling for life are concerned?
Again…
each and every one of us must ask these questions.
Asking them before we actually commit…
ultimately saves a lot of time…
energy…
and possible frustration!
Have you asked yourself any of these questions lately?
How about now?
I’d love to hear you thoughts!
I love when you ask thought provoking questions – I often answer them here so I can grow and share with my fellow leadership education community – but I realized this morning with that giant list of GREAT questions – it was time to start a notebook… I jumped out of my chair, went to the garage where a slew of blank notebooks sit ready – grabbed one and titled it: My thoughts on TommyMom. It is time for me to not only answer here…but to keep a journal. Answering here is great BUT for me it has become ‘conveyer belt’ – I answer and promptly forget about it – much like the tests I took in college. So if I use my journal- it will be easy for me to revisit topics, answers, etc and continue to grow.. so that’s my thought for today. I will explore why I want to ‘get involved’ in my journal today durring my quiet time. HAppy first day of summer everyone!
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So now I’ll answer a few of the questions because I do desire to grow and share with other home educators…
Why do you want to get involved? I feel blessed with gifts/talents by God, and I feel these gifts come with the responsibility to share them. I completely enjoy sharing my gifts with others- it’s not a chore.
The question that struck me today is this one: Do your experiences fill a need that is currently looking to be filled? I really need to look at this – I tent to ‘think’ the need is there and I want to push forward rounding the edges of a perfectly good square so it will slide into a round hole. I think the need is there, but I must seek guidance and talk with others to evaluate if the need is real or perceived.
That’s all for today my leadership friends- I look forward to reading what others think!
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That is really cool that you mentioned, “Good, better and best” as that is the title to one of my favorite talks ever given at my church. I quote it often as there are so many good things we can be doing in life. The question is, however, are there better things we can invest our time in? And, what’s the best thing I can use my time on? These questions are so important as our time here on this earth is so limited and their are such great things we have to accomplish. Thanks for reminding me to review that favorite talk of mine, I needed a refresher! Here’s the link if anyone else cares to check it out:
http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=5ce926cb31cf5110VgnVCM100000176f620a____&vgnextoid=f318118dd536c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD
I also appreciated the quote from the DeMille’s as it is a constant challenge to change that conveyor belt mentality and feel that it’s okay to do it differently than “everybody else”. Especially when all the questions come in from others once they learn you have decided to homeschool. It’s amazing how people suddenly becomed so concerned with my children’s education once that bit is revealed. Kind of cracks me up how people think the current educational system in this country is the right way for kids to learn and any alternative is so risky. Too funny, but I have to admit that I am affected, somewhat, by other’s comments in regard to my decision. Not enough to decide otherwise, but enough to make me question if the way I’m doing it is right. So little time, so much to learn! Thanks, as always, for sharing your wisdom, Teri!
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