Home | Charis Buckland

Hello there! It’s summer break around here! I am more excited than my students, the big girls, are! We went to a new place in town to celebrate and of course, it began to rain as we pulled in, and stormed like crazy as we drank our fun drinks. No complaints, though, since I absolutely love storms!

As we close another year of homeschool, year number seven to be exact, I love to ponder what we have all learned and how we have grown. It is always cool to see what God has taught and is currently teaching. It is interesting to see how God has grown each of us. I also wipe away a tear as I take pictures of each face as another year has managed to escape my grasp.

Homeschooling is advantageous for us because it allows me to watch closely the “little” people learn academics, learn about God, grow spiritually, struggle, achieve, all while we are in our safe little house. 

Let me assure you not every day is a great day. There are many days of struggle and tears. There are days I am sure are just not even redeemable, with no way to fix it until we go to sleep and enter a new day! Sometimes we are late to everything, diapers explode, sass runs amuck, and people fight like cats and dogs. These ordinary days, however, are going to be the days we remember most of all.

I am glad to be able to see closely their facial expressions and to learn what they mean. I am happy that I get to notice what is important to each student at home. I am thankful I get to be the one to watch them “get” an academic concept, or even learn something about God at the table. I love that I can see when people decide to help each other instead of choosing the easy way to ignore someone’s need. 

We have danced…

We have sung at church…

As I reflect on the year, I would love to include some lessons we have been learning personally. It’s great these lessons don’t have an age limit and apply to all of us!

Speak positively about others even when they are not around to hear. The ability to encourage others shows security and confidence. Most importantly, it shows the ability to lift others up in love like Jesus.

Be on time every time. This demonstrates dependability and maturity. Watch out for the big silver van barreling down the road if we are late to ballet! Just kidding! A reputation for timeliness is helpful when every once in a while, crazy stuff happens, and you are late.

Choose optimism while being realistic. It’s necessary to be real when life doesn’t turn out as planned and it’s okay to be disappointed about it. It’s also incredibly helpful to stay optimistic and look for the next best plan. 

Use good manners. Chew with your mouth closed, take smaller bites, put a napkin in your lap, say please and thank you. Elbows off the table. I love watching the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders show when the training camp girls go to a fancy dinner and their manners are observed while they eat. It’s fun to learn etiquette rules I didn’t know!

Let others brag for you, don’t beg for compliments. People can tell when you are looking for approval. Bragging shows insecurity and focus on oneself.

Don’t make excuses. Own the problem, fix the problem. We always say around here, “If you know better, do better.” I know I have a hard time getting the girls to ballet on time on Tuesdays because the traffic at that hour is terrible, so I have to make myself leave earlier than I want to, in order to get them to their classes on time. 

Don’t put off till tomorrow what you can do today. While finishing up school for the year, one of the girls had one last report to finish, so she said at the supper table, she would get up early the next day to finish. I knew it would take her just a few minutes, so after talking about it, she decided to finish it after supper. Although not her first choice, since the other girls were watching a movie, she finished it and joined the movie-watchers. She expressed she was glad she didn’t wait to complete the task and was able to watch a movie, knowing she wouldn’t have to worry about the report anymore! 

Humbly take correction. The fact is, you may fully know how to do something and don’t want correction or training from someone else, but sometimes there will be someone in authority in charge of you. Humbly accept the task and do it well. 

Show gratitude. Saying please and thank you, sending cards, and making sure that others know they are appreciated is just kind. Jesus wants us to show love to others and making the effort to show gratitude for others helps us do that.

Do your best even when nobody knows. No matter who does or doesn’t see what you did, God always sees. Sometimes just God knowing is good enough. 

Don’t pick apart what others say or do. It’s way less stressful to assume others are doing their best with what they know. It may not be perfect and it may not be what you would prefer, but if your boss chooses to do something a certain way, humbly go with it and do your best. 

Dress for success. The route to school may only involve walking downstairs to the school desks, but a decent outfit, fixed hair, and teeth brushed make a difference in the way you feel and how well you do in school. Every time. 

Include everyone possible. Feeling left out is equivalent to physical pain, and we have all felt left out at some point and can relate. When we host a birthday party, we like to invite everyone in their ballet class or everyone in Sunday School, so everyone feels included. It’s another way to love people like Jesus. It’s important even at home, not avoid factions. Switching up siblings for different chores or trips helps everyone learn to appreciate unique qualities about each other. It’s also way more fun!

These are just a few topics we have talked about at the supper table over the school year. What have you been learning? 

Love,
Charis

Pic(k) of the week:

The closets here are tiny, so we just got a clothing rack for one bedroom with girls clothing. Of course, someone tried to climb the rack and knocked it over…more than once…