“The Importance of Being Earnest-ly... Together!”

“What do you mean - together?”, you say. “We homeschool our kids. We’re ALWAYS together!!!”

Uh huh. I understand. I’ve said it, too. But there is togetherness, and then there is... togetherness.

Let me go back to the beginning of this tale, if I may. At the end of March, we worked like maniacs to load our van with all of the paraphernalia required by a family of five for five weeks on the road. I kept wondering what essential part of my brain was inoperative since only crazy people would do what we were planning to do - spend five weeks locked in a van with five people and a dog, hurtling across the nation like mad, speaking to homeschoolers about the wonders of “home” schooling ( a misnomer in our case - we’ve obviously spent more time with the “Road Scholars” approach).

We finally accomplished the impossible. Several hours past our deadline for leaving, we were finished... And exhausted... And barely functional, with the scenery hurtling by outside the windows. Again I wondered, “Why, exactly, are we doing this?”

Start the engine. Drive away. Wave goodbye to Spearfish, South Dakota.  Pray for God’s protection on our travels. Sit back with a sigh of relief.

That’s when it hit me! My kids are here!! All three of them, in the same spot at the same time!!! No phones, no meetings, no distractions... They were, I’m sure, thinking the same thing of Bill and me, “Mom and Dad all to ourselves? No phones, no meetings, no distractions?”

Yahoo! Talk about quality family time - we were going to have it in prodigious amounts!! So, I began talking to my kids... and listening to them. I began remembering that this is, in fact, the best “perk” of doing what we do - getting away from the normal distractions of everyday life and being together as a family.

We have had opportunities to talk about long range goals and apprenticeship possibilities with Isaac, the requirements of hiking the Appalachian Trail with Michael, and the beauty of ancient hymns with Melody. We’ve sung silly songs together, made jokes about fast food, read a bit from “Laddie” by Gene Stratton Porter, and enjoyed one another’s company. We’ve discussed the historical church, summer drama camp, and how to change our family’s concert. In fact, we’ve been able to spend time talking about things we’ve thought about for months, but never seemed to find the time to talk about at home.

All of this has led to the rediscovery of how much I enjoy these three precious young people - their humor, their perspective, their spirituality, their interests and passions. And it has made me ask why I have to wait until we get on the road to spend this kind of time with them...

Confession time: I am often a driven person - not just when I’m in the passenger seat! I have things to do, places to go, people to e-mail. Life is taking place at a frantic pace, and it’s all I can do to try to keep up. Unfortunately, in the midst of the pace, I lose sight of that which is most precious - the relationships.

As this has all become increasingly clear to me, I have confessed to my husband and children the frantic busy-ness of my life on the home front, and have asked them to pray with me about how to discover “earnest togetherness” in the midst of everyday life at home.

Why do I share all of this with you? Perhaps there are a few of you out there who need to take the phone off the hook, shut down the computer, turn off the television, and hide your daytimer in order to rediscover your precious family. Some of you may need to take the weekend “off”, and whisk your family away to a tent in the wilderness for some R & R. Others may be able to stay home and accomplish the same experience of togetherness. Some may be like me, and need to re-examine your entire homelife structure in order to create room for relationship with your spouse and children.

I have been experiencing the wonderful fruit of being together - earnestly, thoughtfully, meaningfully together - with my family, and I can tell you that it is one of the most precious moments I’ve had in a long time.

Blessings,

Diana... On the Road