Teaching Enjoyment

I learned something in public school and college, I learned it well. I learned to do things just to get them done. 

Now it is taking me years to learn how to do things to enjoy them. This is just one of many reasons we are homeschooling our kids. We want to convey early on that life isn't about the rat race and it isn't about getting a job to pay bills. That it isn't about getting a passing grade. That it isn't about settling for mediocre. It's not about knowing a little of every subject on earth and in turn being great at nothing. 

What happened to passion? To mastering something you were born to do?

Comply, obey, follow. Learn the answers and don't question them. That's what I was taught in school. That's how we conveniently create a work force of 9 to 5ers who complete monotonous assigned tasks, to get a steady paycheck at the mercy of a boss, to pay for a house that you practically only sleep in. Vicious cycle.

Why not invent? Imagine, create, lead? What if people earned a living doing something they love? What if everyone did what they were born to do, with passion, making their own lives and that of others better?

Public school never helped me discover my passions. It crammed my time with tasks and tidbits of information that wasn't useful in real life so that I ultimately wouldn't find what I'm truly passionate about. At the least, it robbed me of the time I needed to practice what I was passionate about.

So how did I find my passion? My parents were the first and foremost key. My mother in particular because she stayed home with my sister and I. She taught me something school never could and that's to do what you love and love what you do. So yes, it's possible to find your passion despite a hectic public school schedule. But at what price? Your passions will get crowded out by busy work, homework, and useless facts.

We love that homeschooling affords us this incredible opportunity to give our kids the tools they need to discover what they are passionate about. To open the world before them as their classroom, not just a building. Offering friendships with people of all ages and walks of life, not just a few dozen kids of the same age. To provide real life experiences that teach things a textbook can never teach.  

Let's teach our kids to savor life, for it can be short. To enjoy what they do now, because tomorrow may not come. To find their passion, because life is too short to settle for mediocre.