There's just so much going on in my life at the moment - and it's one of those cases where if anyone asked me what I was up to I'd be hard pushed to describe it as busy as it feels, but all I know is that it seems like there's a lot on my plate and I'm always busy!!
Currawong and I are having a 'men are from mars, women are from venus' elongated moment, trying to work out how to communicate so that I can express my feelings without him feeling like I'm hurling accusations at him and telling him he's not good enough.....can other women relate to that one?
Keep meaning to put more pictures of things for sale on Etsy, but typing minutes, and writing legal letters, and shopping, and giving advice, and listening, and networking and little/big things like that take up vast amounts of time that don't get spent on my passion at the moment. Still. I keep reminding myself how incredibly lucky I am to be able to spend all my time either playing with my kiddies, being part of a community, or plying my passion as it is!
How incredibly greatful and fortunate I am that I've chosen a life without compromise, so I don't have to do what the majority of folk have to do - mortgage and compromise their souls to pay their mortgage.... I was trying to explain that to Griffyn this morning. Again, I felt so blessed that I've got to explain to him that a huge amount of people in our country have to come up with huge amounts of money just to live in houses, and in order to make that money, they often have to work in jobs they don't really like. I love that it's a strange concept to him and us.
We live in a community, and pay a minimal rent to live on 86 glorious acres with people we love, no compromise necessary. And because we live on these glorious acres with people we love, we can go on trips when we please, cause we're not working for other people in jobs we don't like, and the people we love will look after our space while we're away. I may be repeating myself, but sometimes I still feel like I gotta pinch myself to see if it's really true!
And we may be having more opportunity to go travelling soon, because we're not really digging the school thing.......unfortunately it seems that the only thing my Griffy is learning at school is how to get punched in the head, how to recite nasty little rhymes, how to tease people different to him and who are differently mentally abled, and how to get teased constantly. I'm not really up for it. My kids are full on and loud and probably know more things about big concepts than some people think fit, but they're still basically pretty honest and innocent. And I like that. I like them being fairly sheltered from the big mad world.
And I reckon we can do a lot better a job of teaching them than their school at the moment. Speaking about teaching them - they're so inspired to stay at home at home at the moment that they've pulled out their homeschooling books and I'm helping them as I write this! In answer to my questions about the physical violence and teasing, I'm being told that 'that's just what kids do' and I don't agree. I think that's 'what kids just do' because that's what we allow them to do, instead of taking the opportunity to change those behaviours, say that it's not allright, and teach ourselves and each other how to do conflict differently.
Cause when you look at the big world stage, it's hard not to notice the big bullies and teasing that's running the world at the moment, and I don't know about you, but I'm not okay with that at all.
And if I consider that I'm living in the Microcosm of the Macrocosm, then it's up to me to learn and teach within my micro world how to do things differently, respectfully, and for the good of all!!
Anyway, enough of a rant. I'll keep writing about all this though, because it's what's happening in my life at the moment.
Here are some more photo's of Tribal Fibres, taken by the beautiful Sienna.
it's awesome that you're keeping your kids at home, they'll only learn as much as the dullest child in the class will allow anyway. Your community sounds amazing, any space for an american expat with a tuxedo cat?? :)
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely darlin!! You'd have to keep the tuxedo cat in a big cage around your house though.....like my cat in her off the shoulder evening dress!!
ReplyDeleteI really feel for you all, because there is nothing worse than seeing the person you love more than life itself being victimised by cruel people. It seems like bullies in general have a heat seeking missile device that detects those who are kind and gentle, and just joyously individual. I encourage you to follow what you both feel is the best for Griffyn, and trust yourselves and your wisdom. It strikes me that dismissing children's violent and unkind behaviour as 'just what kids do' happily divests parents of any social responsibility as a guide and teacher. Bit of a tragedy I feel, for parents not to bestow the gifts of kindness, and love for others upon their children. Perhaps as sobering is my belief that children bank these negative experiences of being bullied (not always even consciously) as they do the positive, and they mold children's personalities over time. We have trodden a very similar path with our daughter who remains wonderfully gregarious and was perhaps not as self aware/worldly wise as most of the children in her class were at the ripe old age of five.
ReplyDeleteHomeschooling - yes! :-) That's our plan. Living w/out compromise - yes! :-) We're trying to work that out (again) right now. Hugs to you and C. Relationships can be so hard sometimes.
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