Fair, Africa, reflecting

This past weekend was the fair.  We didn't have any animals in the fair due to poor planning and execution on my part.  So we just let Soren just wade in from the shallow end.  He got up every morning at 6:00 and rode his bike down to help the other kids with their animals.  He shoveled chips and filled feeders for four days straight.  Rick commented that his attention span is much longer when he has a shovel in his hand.  I am finding that he and I have a lot in common.  We do much better when we are working some large muscle groups.   I have learned to love reading, but even now I have to get up and walk around frequently or I find my mind wandering.  He absolutely loved being at the fair.  I think it will be just the motivation he needs to get him through some 4-H meetings and record book keeping.  I am looking forward to starting a project and wrapping it up a year from now knowing we had a view of the end from the beginning.

Today we got back to some book learning.  One of the things I love the most about teaching my children is that I get to learn even more than they do.  The books that Sonlight uses really get into some real life issues.  We have talked a lot about how different cultures relate to each other.  How slavery has looked throughout history.  Why people become slaves.  How covetousness can cause men to do injustice to other people.  We have had some very thought provoking discussions.  We had one of these discussion right before lunch this morning.  Nes was doing a lot of processing, which I failed to notice.  I dove right into lunch prep and dinner prep and missed a great opportunity to help him sort some things out.  He eventually burst into tears and managed to make me understand that he was trying to wrestle with some things that were beyond him.

I hate it when that happens.  I put down my grocery list and my purse and picked up my son.  We sat down and talked about Africa.  We talked about what it means to be home.  Being bi-cultural is a tricky thing even for a very well adjusted, smart, little boy.  He loves Africa.  He loves America.  He doesn't want to love one more than the other.  Ultimately I think he really loves God and he wants to please him in all that he loves.  I am so glad for these long conversations that are not possible when the kids are not home.  I think he and Martha need a lot of time to talk through their very conflicted emotions.  I just hope that I get a little quicker about seeing what is happening and not assuming contemplation is a lack of cooperation.

I spend a lot of time thinking about relationships these days.  Helping my kids form healthy relationships.  Making sure I'm not neglecting mine.  It takes a lot more energy than I imagined it would back when my days were filled with diapers and discipline.  I think I need to fit a little bit more reflective time into my day.  My kids need it too.  We have a time to journal, which is very good, but I think a block of time to just let your mind unwind may be in order.  Sometimes we really need to think about these people God puts into our lives.  I also need to think about God.  All my relationships go right back into him.