Teaching From Rest

I have the haziest memory of this book being prescribed to me by a loving friend, months ago. Now I don't even remember who it was that recommended it, (THANK YOU, anonymous friend) but thankfully the title of the book kicked around in my skull for long enough that I was able to find it when I needed it.  

I finally read it this week and wish so much that I had read it my very first year of home schooling.  It is inspired and powerful and it has brought me a great deal of hope and joy already.

I consider myself really good at simplifying, so a lot of the practical elements of this book were refreshers for me.  But at the core of Sarah's writing is one of the most honest and relatable discourses on grace I've ever read.  

"Rest" is the place between anxiety and neglect.  Sarah teaches that we all tend toward one side or another of rest most of the time.  Sometimes we even swing back and forth.  I spend most of my time on the anxious side.  But when we can still the pendulum on our trust in the Savior we are truly at rest.  

"After all, our job is not to be successful--success itself is entirely beside the point.  It's faithfulness that He wants.  God is good!  He isn't going to let us pour out our hearts for our children only to be left choking on the dust of our mistakes...The heart of this book is about remembering what our true task really is and then throwing ourselves in completely. Giving our all.  The raising of children, the teaching of truth, the sharing of life, the nourishing of imagination, the cultivating of wisdom: These are all his anyway; we are merely His servants." 

Oh, it is liberating to remember who we are and whose we are, and to remember that we are only helpers in God's great work.  It frees me up to enjoy the work more and worry over it less.  

"You are where you are (which is likely to be exactly where God wants you).  So work hard every day.  Value academic work because nurturing the intellect is part of what makes us fully human, but don't elevate it beyond its place.  There are relationships to cultivate, books to read, oceans to swim in, forts to build, toilets to scrub, bills to pay, paintings to create, dinners to make.  This is why we homeschool--because we want to engage in a full-to-bursting life."

 "Lavish" is a word Sarah uses over and over to describe the way a home school mother teaches, loves, and listens.  I have been working this week on loving lavishly in my home.  It is slow, satisfying work.  I love thinking about what a great privilege it is for me to be with the people I love all day every day.  Who gets that?  When I am miserly with my time and my love, my work is tedious and discouraging.  But this week, I've had a few magical moments of gratitude--of living truly in the moment.  I want to love lavishly every day of my life.

And one last, lovely thought from this book that I will treasure: a woman who embraces her unique strengths and teaching style is a woman who enjoys her work, and a woman who enjoys her work has a happy family.  I have often tried to do another woman's version of home school. It is unnatural, stressful, and no fun for me or the kids.  But when I think about the things that I absolutely love and do those with the kids, we have a great time.  So the schedule includes necessaries like math and spelling--yes--but it also honors my love of reading and conversation with a 45-minute chunk for studying the classics together.  And that bright spot of teaching from my strength makes all the other hard work worth it.  

There is simply too much beautiful, simple wisdom bound up in this surprisingly thin volume--you've got to read it for yourself.  Or buy it for that wonderful woman on your list who could use a little rest.    You can find more of Sarah's thinking at amongstlovelythings.com.

Summer Book Reviews

It always makes me laugh when people say they don't have time to read.  It's like, "people!  What else is there?"  But I have to say that I'm a little sad about fall because I know I'll read a lot less than I have been lately.  I love summer reading! Here are my favs from this summer (A.K.A. the ones I can remember.)  Admittedly, none of these are really new titles, so you may have already read them.  But they were new to me, and I loved them!

Wonder
My new friend Rosie sent me this book as a gift for no good reason, and I can't remember the last time someone did that. I absolutely devoured it.  It is the story of a fifth-grade boy born with massive facial deformities.  He has never been to public school because he's always been recovering from surgeries, but his parents decide that the time has come.  As if middle school isn't hard enough! There are some heart-wrenching passages, but big payoffs throughout.  My favorite part of this book is the family of this boy.  You can tell they've allowed their trials to bring them closer together, and to fill them with compassion and love.  Everyone they meet is drawn into this family circle because of the love and peace they feel there.  This book is powerful, funny, and full of heart.

The Ties That Bind
My sister introduced me to this author when she recommended Desperate Measures as a book whose heroine understands the difference between feminism and happiness.  I loved it, and quickly moved on to this one, which turns out to be my favorite of the two.  This is the story of a young man about to become a father.  Because his father walked out on him, he has serious doubts about his own ability to be a good dad, and his wife encourages him to track his dad down and talk to him.  This leads him on a quest that helps him understand not only his father, but those who came before him.  I'm doing a terrible job describing it, but this is really a great book.  It's a book about family history that is not at all corny or didactic.  Wait, am I making it worse?  Just trust me and go read it.

               

Dressing Your Truth/The Child Whisperer
These are two books that I have held off reading forever for the basic fact that this woman's making a lot of money right now, and that makes me instantly suspicious.  Having said that, I now have to concede that she's pretty brilliant.  Both of these books are based on her energy profiling system, which delineates four basic types of person.  The term, "energy profiling" makes me suspicious, too, and if you feel the same you can comfort yourself that it's just another personality test.  Personality tests are always fun; remember the Color Code?

Anyway, Dressing Your Truth's basic premise is that if you dress like the kind of person you are, people won't be surprised when you act the way you are.  It talks a lot about how we all have closets full of clothing we really don't like, because we're stuck trying to follow fashions or even bad advice. This book has made shopping for and wearing clothes a lot more fun for me.  I feel more at home in what I wear, and I now know why I hate some of the clothes that are perfectly good.  She doesn't go a lot into details, I have to say.  You're supposed to get online, give her a bunch of money, and then learn all she has to say.  But you can pick up enough from the book, YouTube and Pinterest to get the hang of it.  Psst: it's free on Amazon and it's a great crash course on the whole energy profiling system, so go for it!

The Child Whisperer is the most insightful parenting book I've ever read, hands down.  It's more like a reference book, really, so don't try to down the whole thing in one weekend.  I skipped straight to the chapters describing the different types, and had so much fun profiling my kids.  She gives great practical advice for each type on how to handle school, recreation, chores, church, discipline, and communication.  It's amazing how easy this book makes it to pinpoint things that work and do not work for each child.  I felt like she had already met each one of them.  This one's free to borrow if you're an Amazon Prime member.

Eliza
I always try to read something about the pioneers in the month of July--ever since last year, that is. It's part of my ongoing effort to prove to myself and the world that I can, indeed, read non-fiction. This year I chose to learn about this amazing lady, and I'm so glad I did.  This book reads--may I say?--almost like a novel, it's so good.  I can't believe how little I knew about her before especially since my oldest daughter is named after her.  For instance, did you know Eliza R. Snow was a plural wife both to Joseph Smith and to Brigham Young?  Did you know she gave her substantial dowry to support the church, reducing reducing her to a boarder in the homes of other families for many years of her life?  Did you know that she was hailed as "Zion's Poetess" but that she was so good she really could have made a name for herself no matter what subject matter she chose?  I love how heavily this book focuses on her literary career.  She wrote with passion, with humor, and with great skill--and she consecrated her whole life to building the kingdom of God on the earth.  She is a true kindred spirit to Relief Society sisters the world over.  This one's a must-read.

Well, let me know if you read one or all of these; I'd love to hear your thoughts!  Also, what books are you dying for the whole world to read?  I need to start my fall line-up!