Restructuring the Ruins

You didn’t see it coming. Life crept up behind you and hijacked your homeschool plans. You have no choice… the curriculum, the routine, the hard-won easy flow of the day… SPLAT! It’s gone and you have to start from scratch. After you’ve prayed what do you do next?

First, comfort your children.

Even if the change is the very thing your kids have been routing for all semester, the pressure that comes with the rubble is not. Don’t convince yourself you’re the only one affected. Your children feel the stress and if it’s not handled gently they can fling it back at you. It doesn’t matter whether or not the fault lies with you… you may have had nothing to do with the sudden change… things may have imploded around you as you fought the good fight… your children may even know it. But without facing their feelings and bolstering their broken hearts you’re inviting a tirade of emotion at the least opportune moment. Love on them. Enjoy them. Pray with them. Help them put their focus back on the Power of Jesus not on the smoldering ashes of their status quo.

Second, chuck what wasn’t working.

Take advantage of your surprise dose of freedom and fire any programs, methods, communities, or curricula that didn’t bring your family joy, focus, faith, or happy memories. Can it! There’s no need to force the square peg into the circle slot if the circle is no more. Let it go. Mourn it. Grieve for your old self and cut it out of your new normal.

Third, hunt down what you love.

This is the fun and frustrating part. If your plans for the school year disintegrated midterm, it may feel as if you don’t have time to investigate enjoyment led learning. You may be left flat broke from the crumbling of your plans and not have the funds to try anything other than your original purchases. Both have happened to me… AT THE SAME TIME.

Embrace what you already have. If you’ve been homeschooling more than a year or two, you own more curriculum than you know. Search your own storehouses. Storm your library for living books. Use all those Science Pins you have waiting in your Homeschoolin’ board. Borrow or swap with a friend. It doesn’t have to be pretty and perfect. Be gracious with your children and with yourself. Amid the hurt and confused feelings, educate out of joy. You can purchase a box set next fall. For now, enjoy the journey.

Fourth, laugh it off!

Yeah right, you might say. I’m not suggesting immediate fake manic giggle fits in the face of pain. Instead, I implore you to rest in the Lord. Let Him carry you and like the woman of Proverbs clothe yourself in His strength and laugh at the future.

God’s already gone ahead of you and is setting the paths straight. Breathe Mama, you can’t change the past and God’s got the rest. Hope in the meantime. Enjoy the present. And laugh at the future. You’re in my prayers.

For more encouragement, you can find me gabbing on Facebook @ Late Night Coffee Moms. Come hang out for a Live.