Living And Learning
December 20, 2015Blog #18 living and learning
October 27, 2014
Yesterday was an absolutely gorgeous autumn day in Chicagoland. The jeans and sweatshirt temperature, the vibrant colors in every direction, the warm sun. I opened the door and let the kids run free. They raked leaves, played with the dog in leaf piles, explored the woods, created backyard games. Found stuff. I don’t know what because I was putting away garden statues and flower pots. It was splendid. In the way of school we did nothing, but in the way of living we did it all perfectly. These days are sometimes hard for me, if you want honesty. The unproductiveness of the day. The fear that my kids won’t learn what they need to learn for life. That they will have to work twice as hard as others to get anywhere in a few years because I didn’t make them do more. I’ve taken to reading more stories about successful adults who are alternatively educated. Funny thing is I haven’t read one story of an unhappy free schooled child yet. This keeps me on my path. In my readings, I came across this John Holt quote that seems fitting for today “There is no difference between living and learning….it is impossible and misleading and harmful to think of them as being separate.” I love this perspective. I believe the kids may have learned more today than most of their school peers may learn this week, and they were definitely happier. Onward to learning through living, and trusting the journey.
Posted by Zahra Lightway. Posted In : Patty's Blog
