One thing I will never regret is giving time to my children as individuals. Learning about them thoroughly, their strengths, their weaknesses, their learning abilities, their deficits…..and seeing to it that those deficits are addressed with helps, such as screenings, therapies and on going work; whatever it takes. Having the ability to tailor a program through homeschooling, to their special needs, be it giftedness or autism spectrum disorder or anxiety, has been a true blessing.
I will also never regret being myself and never feeling pressured to keep up with family members, the neighbors or you know, the Joneses, so to speak. Not feeling the need to compete with others, compete with incomes, clothing, or whatever else might be a temptation, is a true freedom; just being me in the Lord and using the gifts and inspirations to raise my unique family the way our Lord is guiding me to do so is very satisfying contentment. I feel very blessed to have been generous in my advanced maternal age with having children without much difficulty. Considering I didn’t give birth to our first until well into age 31, and our last at age 43, I definitely consider this a blessing.
It’s a lovely place to have lived enough life and raised children enough into adulthood that you can help to mentor others in both education and mothering. There were those that came before me, helping me along the path of motherhood and homeschooling and they will forever remain special in my heart as they provided encouragement, strength and guidance to me, a newcomer on the scene. I have never professed to know it all, or to need no one. I am not island. My family is not an island. I believe God calls us out of the confines of family and into society to connect with others (for evangelization purposes of all kinds). Much has changed over the last 20 years in my raising children, but what remains the same is mothers are still in need of encouragement and true friendship outside of their households. Aristotle talks about “speculative” discussion, and that is the kind of wonderful fulfilling discussion mothers and others can have with one another that helps them to rise above and be refreshed in mind and soul and strive for the greater good.
May God bless all those special families carrying burdens and wanting to make changes. Relieve them of those burdens, grant them peace and guidance and truly help them know there is a special path just for them, and bring people to them into that path, that can help lead them to peace and happiness.
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