Robyn Elizabeth Lynne, How Would You Have Done Home Schooling Her?

Robyn Elizabeth Lynne, this is the gal I started out home schooling. Not quite sure what I was thinking but clear thinking has not guided me as often as I would like and it certainly did not with home schooling Robyn. I have said it often, when she arrived in this world she held me up against the wall by my collar and demanded from me answers, clear ones. I have yet to be able to fill that request!

This is the bare honest truth, she is way more smarter, loaded with tons more wisdom, organizational skills from who knows where, and thinks in a logical way that makes me want to slink over to the corner to slump. When she was three I was frustrated by her procrastination in the form of questions.
"Robyn, you are the queen of questions!" I told my little three year old.
"and I wish you were the queen of answers!" she replied in an itty bitty three year old voice.

What do you do? You choke on your spit is what you do! The signs were clear from the get go that this young thing knew what she wanted and had to simply wait until she could retrieve it for herself, no one else was delivering the way she knew they should. If ever I had anticipated a speaking career leading others in the uncharted paths of parenting, she made me put that dream to death!

"Were you home schooled? Did your mom talk about homeschooling? Did your mom want to home school you?"
My answers were pitiful, no.
"Then why do you want to home school me?" Off to kindergarten she went, she made her point, it was sound and frankly she scared me and these questions were asked at age four.

Thankfully, Carol Hoke rescued me. She had a one room school house teaching grades first through fifth. It met four days a week from 8-12:00 p.m.. Robyn received a stellar elementary education. At her graduation I do not remember my name in the line up of thank you's. In fact the only name I heard Robyn exclaim the night of her high school graduation was, Carol Hoke! Was I hurt? No, just real thankful that Carol was around to be subcontracted for the job! Carol and Robyn are sequential, logical and little bitty women who know how to command anyone they want to, you just do not mess with these women!

Sixth grade is when I had Robyn all to myself. She would sit on the couch with hands folded, face looking like I had nothing I could possibly give her by way of education, and an attitude that could be felt miles away. The other children would just wait for my pathetic lectures to her to be over. It was not fun. She would get me to a point where I would lose it and the yelling between the two of us was not good. We knew how to make a room go tense.

We realized at a certain point that our conversation was the same one over and over and neither of us knew how to get out of it. We had no counselor on site to wrench us from the hamster wheel of a mess.

When moms tell me that there is no way they could home school their child because they would butt heads, I just stand there thinking, "Been there done that."

But Robyn, the woman who at age sixteen knew who she was going to marry and wouldn't you know it, she did, was and is one amazing person. We had many wonderful conversations that astounded and inspired me! I loved watching her independence maneuver her education. She would read an author's complete works and then use the internet to further her studies by answering questions posed about the works?!! I do not have the attention span for that!

In eighth grade I hauled her off to a seminar. This is where she realized her education was her own. This is where ownership began. She, so responsible, always had a high school job and if the money was not decent she would request the amount desired and usually got it! When people would say to me what a good job I was doing with her, I would back out of the compliment as quick as I could. No, Robyn was the one, she was doing a good job.

This past March I was high up in the bleachers at West Chester University watching my little girl receive her degree in High School English Education. The honor of summa Cum laude was conferred on her. Robyn would tell you that she is glad she was home schooled. In fact the three older children are all appreciative. Just tonight, Kathryn said to me, "Mom, you always said that I would thank you for home schooling me, You are right! I am so glad for it."

Robyn, the first, was the hardest but what a privilege to be the mother of this young woman! Everything was worth it. We do not base our commitment to something for the ease of it, we commit to something because we know it to be what we are to do. However, honestly, if it were not for Lynn, I would not be committed to this endeavor. Glad he is around! He is the talker off the cliffer.

Theology in the Eyes of a Child

Jesse asks us a profound question as we are driving away from night church. We are silenced. Why God would ever entrust His creation to folks like us I will never understand.

"If we are to God like a speck of dust, how can He live in us?"

Good question!

"Jesse, we are almost to your grandparents house. Ask them!"

Grandpa told Jesse, God is a spirit and not restricted to size.

To see ourselves as a speck of dust is where we begin the extraordinary journey of glorifying God through the lives we live!

Weekends

What do you do? This was one full weekend! How are we to manage our day when we are exhausted from the weekend? Friday night was a celebration of the "win" at the Harvest parade. Eight boys, including my son, slept over night in the backyard. They had strict instructions to be in bed by midnight. That is almost like trying to get toothpaste back into the tube.

Saturday morning my daughters and I were off to an event called Queen for a Day. This event honors women who are caregivers twenty-four seven and find themselves with no time for themselves. This day is one in which they are prayed for and pampered.

In the evening there was a backyard twenty-first birthday party for the neighbor "boy." Geoff and I finished the night watching a movie. He was not fit for the Sunday morning message and I must be careful on Saturdays (hope I remember!). Nicole was sleeping over at someone's home.

Sunday after church we had Melissa, Chris and their two children, Stella and Eli over for homemade pizza with Antonio's dough! To die for! In the evening we hauled off to night church much to Nicole's dismay. She wanted to go trick-or-treating. She was adamant even after I read some decent pieces off of the internet sites on why it wasn't such a good idea. "Are you finished?" was her response.

Then we landed at my in-laws for our Sunday evening get together. These are treasured times with treasured in-laws. Nicole wanted to trick-or-treat in their development. I let her trick-or-treat at her grandparents house. She was satisfied as I answered the door with a voice to scare off any sane trick-or-treater. She's not sane! :)

So now the question is how are we to manage our day after a full weekend?
Do you let them rest? Do you wake them up and push and pull all morning? You would think I would have ready answers having done this a time or two!
Nope! I have none. What do you do?

Another " Should I Be Days"........

My track, like this track affected by an earthquake, needs a line up. Too many of these "Should I Be Days" in a row are fatal to my momentum. I am off course. Today was one of those days. I explained these funk kind of days before, just a few days ago.

I have not had a slew of these days because Lynn knows how to talk me off this cliff. But something went haywire today. Ah, now I know what it was! I was on Facebook at 5:15 a.m. looking at pictures of a young girl who is now in college. Her mother is an old friend. Early in the morning I was looking over somebody else's fence and wondering if my children were getting an adequate education. And all this just from looking at pictures, on facebook. How p-a-t-h-e-t-i-c is that? Say it, go ahead!

The Bible Study tonight I attended was on God's sovereignty. We are studying Daniel. This was the tonic I needed to kick me out of the slump. (sounds so dang spiritual, but the truth)

I am good to go for tomorrow. In fact I was so relieved after Bible study I decided it was time for a celebration. We headed over to Walmart and purchased the necessary fixings for nachos! I could eat a plate full of nachos with cheese, refried beans, etc. till I am blue in the face. Now it is 12:28 p.m., I am going to be exhausted. My day is full, I might be prone to more fence peeking because of being tired........

So, welcome to my world.

Grand Canyon, PA

Field Trips, can one ever do too many? Small children for over twenty-two years and now the youngest almost seven???

"She's out of the gate with a start, folks, heading down the tracks. Looks as if she has been couped up for a while, just look at her, that old mare just might win, ladies and gentlemen! Just look at her!"

Thursday morning, against conventional wisdom, we piled into a van and headed out to the Allegany Plateua region of PA, straight toward Potter County. The drive was breathtaking, for as much as I saw while awake. Dale the driver, thankfully was alert.

Our first stop was the Grand Canyon of Pa. As you can see on the picture, taken by Dawn, the other mother along, the Canyon is beautiful. A river winding its way through the hills on either side calls you down. Down is where we went zig zagging back and forth down the mountain. Up is where we had to return. That was a bit more of a challenge.

The following day we went to a Lumber museum and learned about the deforestation that took place and the conservation that developed after. Guess what I read more about? The American Chestnut Tree! I do not have time to write about it now but I will. When I start dreaming of American Chestnut saplings that is when I will start therapy.

We returned on Saturday. Short and sweet and to the point are my favorite trips!

Halloween, uh, I Mean Harvest Parade

As a little girl I grew up celebrating Halloween. My favorite costume was that of a nurse. I was five and knew that I could probably walk into a hospital and they would let me hook up an IV. I looked that good.

I love scary stories and I know how to scare the "bajupies" out of my children without even telling a scary story to the end. Truth be told, and do not tell them, I know not one scary story. It is all in the presentation.

Elverson has a parade. When our first three children were young it was called the "Halloween" parade. We can not go to that parade with a title such as that. These were our thoughts of long ago. We can not have hanging over our heads the thought of leading our children down the road to witchcraft, no way!

Many years ago Elverson renamed their parade, Harvest Parade. Here we go, that sounds a bit better to my sensitive conscience, we can go. Off we hike with Geoffrey, Nicky Sue and Jesse too. Love it! If they change it back to "Halloween Parade" we do not even care. We love this home town parade with two local High school bands, a local fife and drum, bagpipes, trucks, fire engines etc.

Tonight our son, on the sticks, along with very talented boys playing fiddles and a guitar won first place for a non business float. Our daughter and her friend and our youngest son threw out candy to the crowds. We sold coffee along the road in front of our friend's home.

This was a night to remember at the Hall...Harvest Parade. Too much fun!
Thanks to Terri Leamer for the photo, mom of two of the boys.

Field Trips

We listened to a woman talking to us about when and where she became passionate to save American Chestnut trees. We were on a field trip at Joanna Furnace. This day was a bit of history and science all in one. All eyes were on her as she is relaying to us their plight. The American Chestnut trees need help.

I force myself to pay attention, my mind wanders. I see an SNL skit in the making, something my children find amusing, "You always see everything as a potential SNL skit...????" I have to go to the back of the crowd, I fear I might break out laughing. To see so many interested in a tree amuses me. I can hardly be serious about myself let alone a tree.

Yet what she is telling us also intrigues me. God cares for not only the details but also the big picture. The details tend to bore me but I do recognize that if there were no details I would be totally bored. It is my pathetic lack of discipline to focus that leads me to boredom. I rely on the speaker to engage me instead of jump starting interest on my own.

Everything on this planet matters. The Creator created everything for a specific purpose and this particular woman telling us of the plight of the American Chestnut Tree gets it! I need more field trips to let it sink in!

I still think there's a good skit to be had!
(TACF Pollination Photos (June-July, 2008))

Yikes, The Day is Almost Gone!

A man has dropped out of heaven and has been coaching me with writing. He has also been pushing us with our businesses and encouraging us to stop creating more businesses but move forward with the ones we have.

"How many more children do you have to home school?" he asks with squinting eyes. My answer makes him flinch and groan. I smile, he just can not understand our lifestyle. Do I understand our lifestyle? He agrees that the family, our family is important but be also sees it necessary for me to be involved with our three businesses, I agree.

Many of my friends are off having fun in the afternoons either because their children are in school or in college. As well ,many of my friends are working to pay for their children's education.( I should add they are not all having fun all the time, they are doing their daily chores, I must be fair!) Lynn and I are smack dab in the throes of all this and raising a young family again.

Grace will see us through. God has not told us to stop homeschooling. In fact with our businesses it is a great learning tool and experience for these last three. They might actually see some exciting things happen. One never knows!

However, it is now noon, my meeting with this man lasted over two hours, two hours of just good stuff! What now, brown cow? First, I will take a breath. Secondly, I am writing. Thirdly, I will pull out my log book and see if I can pull something together for these turkeys.

While away a sculpture was created and pasted together and a horse corral was pulled together with living room furniture. So be it!

It is a good thing it is grace to grow the children, grace to grow our relationships, grace to grow the businesses! It all boils down to grace. What a relief it does not boil down to my abilities.

Guess I Have to Do It!

My husband three weeks ago complained that it seemed like it was going to default to him to start the stand, the coffee stand. I stared at him, eyes squinted at his eyes, hearing more than he was saying. Default to him? Where was he going with this? Was I suppose to feel sorry and raise my hand to rescue him from the default pit he was falling into? Those who know me know full well that mercy is something I always have to ask for!

We live along a busy road, we roast coffee, we sell coffee and for years he has wanted to sell coffee along our route. He even made a stand two years ago. We have used that stand, had to right that stand when the wind blew it over, tweaked that stand and have waited to use that stand.

Lynn knew the time was right and now he was bemoaning the fact. I was confused, I thought this was the awaited moment. I have been wrong before. Maybe it was looking more real, he could feel the pain of waking at 5:30 a.m., stumbling out to the studio to brew, and setting up the stand in the dark.

We have been selling our wares at a local Farmer's Market in Elverson, PA. The market was ending in October and people were wondering where now they could go for a cup of TwinValleyCoffee. We wondered too.

We came to the market like a dog being led to his crate when all he wants to do is play. Elverson has a newsletter and our names appeared in it with a request that people ask us to be apart of the Market. They wanted coffee. All we could think of was the commitment of every Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. However, we were honored and realized that after all was said and done we would probably shudder at the thought of not doing it. Sometimes we are just plain dumb!

I wake up to a stellar cup of coffee everyday and how wonderful it was to share this with all the people we served at our stand. What a privilege to meet the residents of Elverson as well and serve them their Saturday morning cup of coffee. Surprisingly and really not so, it interrupted not a thing, we are just not that busy.

Now it was time and Lynn knew it. Time to pull that big old heavy clunker of a thing (don't tell him I said so)out to the side of the road and open up the Coffee Shack! And here he was complaining. Aye Vaye...what to do with this guy. We discussed this for a while and when we ended our discussion, let's just say, he was good to go.

I hauled off to Rhode Island to help my mother recuperate from an operation and Lynn stayed home and during that time opened up the Coffee Shack. The picture on this post is what he sent me via cell phone. I just smiled.

We are having fun. We both look forward to the wonderful people who stop and chat and purchase the best cup of coffee in town. We even let our friend Keith Grant stand there with his Dunkin Donuts stryofoam cup. Hey, you gotta start somewhere. We'll get him eventually. He likes the stryofoam, we like the paper........

Default, yea buddy, I guess it did default to you. You were the one with this coffee dream.

"Should I be?" Days.

These past couple of days need a name. Maybe they should be called "Should I be?" days. I have traveled this path before in the home school scheme of things. Yes, I accomplish learning experiences with the children. No, I am not losing my patience with them. But there is a looking over the fence on days like these, should I really be doing this. Everyone else is surely doing it "way much" better. I am convinced of it during these kinds of days. I go through the list of "shoulds." I should be reading this to them, I should be doing this with them, I should have them involved with this, with that, with EVERYTHING IN AND UNDER THE SUN!

I was talking with my father yesterday. Another couple from their apartment complex complimented his grandchildren,our children, the three birds we home school. They commented on their politeness and kindness. This was yet another compliment from our recent visit, a number of people had spoken to my parents along the same lines. This affirms our vision of true education which encompasses more than knowledge and ventures deep into the land of values.

"Should I be?" days are actually good for me to slog through. It never hurts to self-evaluate. I often come out the other end convinced that the course we are on is the course we are to be on. This world is shifting, knowledge is increasing at such a rapid rate we have to be wise and prudent as to what we believe is to be the knowledge base for this period of time.

But this I know to be true, even during my "Should I be?" days, the Word of God stands true and unchanged by the changing times. Though the knowledge base is changing like the speed of lightning, God is not. The daily practice of Bible reading with the freedom to discuss what comes up during the reading is something that should pull me quickly out of the "Should I be?" days!

The Tree Climber

One never knows what the day will hold but we do know who holds the day! Sunday was one of those days I was truly glad to know The Day Holder as my six year old tree climber fell twenty feet from the top of his grandparent's tree. I was transporting Nicole to night church at Community Evangelical Free Church and upon returning was met with the grim news.

Jesse was obviously struggling to breathe, his neck and back hurt, and when touching his tummy it was obvious there was pain. My brother in law, a physical therapist, witnessed the fall. He was able to give him the medical treatment necessary and helped me to process the fact that an ambulance ride was in order!

The ambulance took us to Reading Hospital's trauma center and there we were met by a team of doctors. The medical community is amazing to me at at time of crisis. Lynn and I waited in a room. Lynn had been coming back from a Phillies game with our son, Geoffrey. They were celebrating Geoff's thirteenth birthday. This was a day of events that our family was having a hard time keeping up with and now this.

The trauma doctor told us that they were going to keep him for observation, hold off on a Cat Scan in lieu of the fact that his body is so little for such a high dose of radiation, and determine through blood work if there was internal bleeding. Jesse and I spent the night in the same bed.

Yesterday around three o'clock they told us that due to the fact that his vitals were good, the blood work was not revealing internal bleeding and that he was able to handle his meal, Jesse could go home.

We walked out of the hospital around four thirty sporting a hospital gown due to the fact his shirt had been ripped off him by the trauma team, dirty socks (but not like Saturday!), and hair that looked like it was on the verge of dreadlocks.

Thank you God for sparing Jesse from broken bones, paralyzation, head injury, and internal damage. God holds the day and He holds the little boy falling from a tree.

Jesse learned a lot. He was awed by what he described as "his dark red blood." Learning happens!

Children Are Amazing!

Yes, I home school. Yes, I believe in home schooling. Do I think it is the only way? No! This is why, we live in a world where diversity exists. Diversity in a forest is a protection against an entire forest being wiped out by a disease that only one type of tree is susceptible to. Diversity allows us to broaden and go deep. Why do we always want to be on the same page? Can you imagine a book of just one page, how boring.

Here is a great example of a public school system motivating their students to create poetry that makes you see. I have to share this, I have done so without permission. Let them yell! I do not care. This is one fantastic poem written by a twelve year old young man, Francis Nyssen. He is the son of dear friends of ours, Greg and Rachel Nyssen, living in Seattle, Washington. He wrote this poem for a writers program in his school. It is amazing. I see it, hear it, smell it, and feel it. Children are amazing.

This is what Rachel wrote on her blog:

"last night, we were at the seattle art museum for the book launch party of
-YOU WILL NOT COME BACK UNCHANGED-a book of poetry and prose from seattle area students K-12, thru the writers in the schools program. francis had one of his poems selected for this book, and he was to read it at the event. we were so proud i actually teared up when i first found out."
http://rachelnyssen.blogspot.com

Enjoy!


ODE TO BIRDS: (by francis nyssen)

Birds, birds
are the most
colorful animals
green
brown
yellow
red
blue
turquoise
purple
neon blue--
I could go on.
The king of nests
has a fancy for huge
very decorated nests.
It's turquoise
and neon blue. It
sends you in a trance.
A yellow canary goes
black against the sun
on a sunny
day.
A rattle of leaves and sounds tell
you
the toucan hops
from branch to
branch, chirping.
It's beak shining, making
us see a blur of color.
A crow searches
endlessly for its
old feathers
of white.
The mimicker of
sounds mimics
the sound of its falling
forest. The king
of voice shines
its colorful feathers.
Red, blue
yellow, green,
it has a stubby
beak. It makes
you see a sea of
colors. Making
you smell fruit.
Cloves send a scent to me
making me think of birds.
A fresh
drink of chai
reminds me of when
I'm sitting in
the bird dome at
the zoo.
At night I can imagine
a vulture looks despairingly
jealous of all the color.
Starlings are
considered
good luck when
they live in your house.
A bird's color is what
the vulture
wants so badly.
Cardinal's red
makes it
look like a
streaking flame
of light across
the sky,
making fire
burn in your
eyes.

by Francis Nyssen

Reflection: Ethiopia

On route to Rhode Island I called Lynn.

"You have to send me Ethiopia coffee, ground, for the ride back!"

This coffee is better than any power drink, better than an IV caffeine hookup, better than, than, it is just the best. My golly, I get to Rhode Island, why stop there, I am ready to go all the way to the border of Canada.

When Lynn is the driver I hop in the car and immediately go to sleep. It is a bit disconcerting when I know that I am the sole driver. Ethiopia coffee, no worries for me, I am safe and awake.

The Flexibility

This morning, as soon as I can, I and the three younger children will be off to Rhode Island. My mother is having surgery, hernia repair. We will be there to help her.....!!!????

We will have fun, yet, it is sad. We like it when we are all together, and we leave four people behind. There is enough bickering in the car when we are all together that would make you think otherwise but it is all a part of being with a family. If there was no bickering there would be no familiarity, can not have one without the other.

If a car is available, the flexibility that home school offers is vundaba. To just go sit at the Atlantic Coast is an awesome thing..........hope to do that. To maybe take in some free historic offerings....want to do that too! To listen to tunes with the children, windows down, chatting about frivolous stuff or discussing issues is a treat I enjoy while driving.

I do not take a working vehicle for granted. I do not take the availability of gas for granted. I do not take "only a hernia repair" operation for granted. I do not take these three engaging children for granted. I will miss the rest of the Burkholder Clan! We are off.

Coffee, I Would Have Never Guessed.

On Wednesdays I am selling coffee by the cup, Twin Valley Coffee mugs, coffee beans by the bag, coffee hand bags, and giving out coffee samples. I am alone at my coffee stand, I am outside in the fresh air, I am yacking with people of all kinds as well as the regulars who grace the place and all is well with the world. I am a vendor at the Reading Hospital Farmer's Market.

Never would I have guessed this for me. I had always been a social coffee drinker and a minimal one at that, until, he ruined me. Every morning smelling freshly brewed coffee wafting through the hallways from the kitchen lured me into the habit. Not only was his coffee freshly brewed but it was freshly roasted. Therein lies the difference between the coffee you are buying at Dunkin Donuts and Twin Valley Coffee. The coffee from Dunkin Donuts is probably not fresh, the beans most likely were ground days ago and it was probably not roasted yesterday. Do not quote me on this, I could be wrong, but I think I am right .

To freshly roasted, freshly brewed coffee, I am now addicted. And I am also a dealer luring others into an addiction. In November I will be sharing how we started our coffee company with a group of women. In January I will be again sharing with another group. The funny thing about that, for so long this coffee stuff just irritated me! It was a rabbit trail. Look who is hopping now.

Word to the wise, let your husband dream and follow him.

Horse Out of the Gate? It Should Be That Way But....

Every morning I wake up with a fresh determination to get right at it and read my bible so I can educate these birds, of course after I walk. I walk at 6:00 a.m. and though I start out looking like a drunken sailor I come home invigorated. I always intend to crack open the Bible. But.......as soon as I walk into the kitchen there it is, the COMPUTER, the window to the world, the connection to everyone.

I slip into the chair and I check my email, I go to Drudge Report and catch up on the latest bad news, I start working on this blog, I recheck my email...
I am so easily distracted. I am writing this at 5:57 a.m., how much do you want to bet that today will be different? Different because now I will feel really guilty.

What amazes me is how easy it is for me to forget what I have learned in the past! The days when I start out, after my walk, meditating on the Bible and talking with the God of the universe are days with a sense of continuity, consistency, and order. These days help me to "get right to it." They are also days where I experience Joy.

What is my problem?

It is now 7:55 a.m. Guess what I did not do? I am going right now......really, I am.
Tommorrow will be different.

Monday Morning

Monday is here. This is the day that breaks or makes me. This is the day that sets my feet in the right direction. Monday morning is significant to all the other days. At least that is always the way I have viewed a Monday morning. However, in light of my faith, should it not be Sunday that determines my week? Have I misplaced the priority?

I have heard it said that Sunday should not be a day that prepares us for the others. But rather we should prepare ourselves for Sunday, the day of rest. Or whatever day you choose as the day of rest. If Sunday would be that kind of day do you think Monday would be different?

Maybe I should look to Sunday as a day to work towards, a day to rest, to settle my soul. A day to look to the Source, ground my spirit in the Book. If I treated Sunday as the hollowed day that it is would I come dragging to Monday with a meandering, not ready to face the work, spirit?

Who knows?

Reflection: Just Keep Talking

My husband and I over the years have learned an important lesson.
When it seems your child is uninterested,
keep talking.
When they look at you as if you really do have five heads,
keep talking.
When their body language loudly asks you to shut up,
keep talking.

Three of our children are now past high school. They will confirm this. They will tell you that though many times they were looking for us to stop talking,
they were glad we kept talking.
We have three younger ones and
we know we can not stop talking.

Our children's attitudes have never been our gauge to determine whether we should talk or not.
The gauge we use is their need.
This is a no brainer, this is why we
keep talking.
Children are so needy.

Dori in "Nemo," says it best. Just keep swimming. Just switch out talking for swimming.

The Limiting Factor

The problem with home schooling is me. I am the limiting factor. I assign work but sometimes fail to check on the assigned work. I make unrealistic requests or set unrealistic goals. I fall asleep reading to them only to find when I wake up they are not waiting for me to finish the sentence. I am distracted, easily persuaded to watch something like Steve Jobs talk about the latest......... Sometimes I do not feel like finishing what we started or I actually forget what I started.

The problem with home schooling is me. I firmly tell an offender to go to their room and only when they call out forty-five minutes later do I remember that I sent them to their room. I do not finish a curriculum that is working because I do not use it for a week and do not know where I last put it. Home schooling requires me to be "on my game." Frankly, I do not enjoy being "with it" twelve hours of the day.

My goal in life is to sit. I am not a dooer. I try to accomplish things and what gets in the way is my insatiable need to sit and read, contemplate or stare. I really like to do that. Home schooling requires a bit more from me than sitting. The sky is the limit with home schooling it really is. Unfortunately my energy level is the limiting factor as well.

Three in the Morning Too Early!

Why did I wake up at three o'clock in the morning when I really need my sleep to accomplish all that lies before me? Who knows. I just know to get up and not turn over! I stumble downstairs and find my bible and stare. My mind is cluttered with condemnation. "You should do this, you should do that, why aren't you doing this, what provoked you to do that, when do you think you will finish this, how are you going to pay for that, when will you write all the thank you notes, what are you going to do about that?"

Hounded!I ain't nothing but a hounded dog. I was talking with a dear woman yesterday about schooling choices. She has decided to send her three school age children to school. The first morning was not so good. When you have prayerfully considered what you are to do and you believe you are walking in obedience, it just stinks when it turns out that way. Standing firm in what we are doing seems to be harder than standing on a boulder near the Maine shore with twenty feet waves crashing onto it grabbing at anything to bring back to the ocean! Honestly!

It hit me while talking to her. Those of us who have home school hearts will always be plagued with intense insecurity and doubts, this is just what I/we have to accept. I remember being a Resident Assistant in college and struggling with the same doubts; am I doing enough for my hall, should I be doing more. My boss encouraged me that this was a sign of my dedication, my caring about the job.

Everyone of us who have children in school or educating them at home should have a "home school heart" which I believe simply put is; caring that their children are receiving what they need by way of knowledge and character development(and certainly not in that order).I will never believe that the choice of our option to educate determines our heart. Parents with children in public or private can have a home school heart like the home schooler. Public, private, or home school are all great choices. What is not so great is when we as parents do not cultivate a home school heart. My friend is hounded and her children are in school, I am hounded and my children are home. We agreed we are forced to prayer! Not a bad thing.

To further this point, the educational option we choose does not determine our heart. There are thousands of parents with a home school heart who send their children to school. Likewise there are many home school parents without a home school heart who should probably be educating their children with a different mode. We can not see the heart! We need to remember this.


So I concluded yesterday, that it is alright if I wake up many mornings at three o'clock filled with a myriad of complicated, insecure thoughts. It just shows that I care and need desperately to bring it all to Jesus! If this is what Jesus has to do to get me to talk to him, it's all good! It's all good! I ain't nothing but a hounded dog!

A Long Time

When Robyn was three months old we attended our first home school conference at Elizabethtown. Many of the speakers have probably put their teaching tools to rest and have moved on into their different phases of life. Our three oldest are done, this year would have been the year for us. But instead as God saw fit we have three more, one still needing to learn to read.

My tools are still in use. Today will be another new year for a group that was started when Robyn was in kindergarten. Helen Hertzler had at least seven students that she met with once a week and while reading the "Trumpet of the Swan" she led them in the most creative unit studies. To be an educator such as Helen would be an honor.

This group has grown into over fifty families that meets for twenty weeks out of the year. Not only do we have an elementary program but we offer high school classes as well. Ten years ago we started a drama program that is still in existence with some changes. The Learning Group, Community Home School Learning Group (for lack of a better title, we lack in creativity!), has provided activities that would be available if one were in school.

Community Home Schoolers has experienced years of God's grace and mercy! Our three youngest are excited for today, the start of another year at the learning group. Their bags are packed, snacks ready to go. A group like this offers a one day shot for homeschoolers to enjoy group learning. There are many things that a child can not experience minus the context of a group.

The discipline problems are solved with family members involved and apologies offered. For the years we have rolled it is amazing the lack of drama. This group is laid back. I am thankful for that.

However, these last couple of weeks have been spent conferring and organizing the details it takes for a group to run. We lost our favored Phys Ed teacher and had to go looking for a replacement. God was good to us again by providing us with another college qualified PE teacher. This new woman has been teaching up at the high school and has implemented programs there that are still in existence, now we are privileged to have her.

So begins another year. Geoffrey in the eighth, Nicole in the fourth, and Jesse in the first! this is amazing.

Relax?! Sure.........

The day is not over.
There's more to be done.
What's left is not minimal.
It seems like a ton.

To bed I can shoo them.
To bed they must go.
I can send them in a hurry,
Or change pace and go slow.

Tomorrow is coming.
Tomorrow waits not.
Adulthood follows quickly
then a big empty slot.

They love me to read.
To snuggle's a must.
The ton will wait patiently.
and now I must trust.

God's timing is infinite.
My timing is not.
He says "Just relax.
You are in the right spot."

By Lynne T. Burkholder
Today,out of control. Whose control? Mine.

Movie Scene: Wholesome Flicks!

Picture credit: An arranged marriage, NOT. This marriage will not be a statistic,it will last! Cyndi and Geoff Treichler married at BOMA, Columbus Ohio on August 27, 2010.

Last night we watched two films. "A Man Called Peter" which was excellent and "Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi" a foreign film. We did not know that this was a foreign film initially, Geoffrey was not happy but it did not take long for this movie to reel us in, man, what fun! I recommend both films. You leave them with a sense of wholeness and actually being challenged by the themes presented.

"Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi" is a film of an arranged marriage and the challenges an arrangement provides along with the beauty as well. It is an Indian musical. I am often bored by musicals but these interludes of music and dancing are just plain fun and goofy. A movie that makes me laugh out loud is rare, this one did.

Judy (Wetmore) Logan has probably seen this movie, but if she has not, I know she will love it. Judy is a friend from college and if you are looking for an engaging book or a great movie this is the woman who has the lists. If Judy likes it, it is good. Funny thing about Judy, I never see her, I have no idea what her latest movies or books are that she would suggest. After all these years she still remains my standard. It has always been a pity that I like Judy more than she likes me.

"Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi" comes close to the solid truth yet diverges on the subject of Hinduism. The references to God are prolific but with a small "g" in all the subtitles. The wisdom from this flick is age old and much to glean from but the "god in you" theme is prevalent throughout the film. This is the biggest drawback. At age fortyish close to fiftyish I can overlook it while reaping the good.

To choose to fall in love, we do not see that kind of courage in our society. We have to feeeeeeeel first, then we choose. The Indian culture still continues in arranged marriages. Interestingly enough the divorce rate pales compared to our "fall in love" society. This movie will give you something to think about and will challenge your paradigms.

"A man Called Peter" diverges not from a Judeo-Christian theme. Peter Marshall was a minister back in the mid fifties that understood the need to be relevant without watering down the gospel. The movie contained long segments of Peter giving sermons. Surprisingly enough they held all of our attention. This is a must see as well.

Reflection: One Never Knows

Picture Credit: Robyn and RJ Saunders married August 15, 2009.

Robyn our oldest and now married to her man, when in high school, attended a journalism camp at Penn State's main campus. Journalism/photography was something she thought she might enjoy. When we picked her up at the end of the time her response was typical Robyn, "It was o.k..." You are waiting for more, driven to madness waiting for more, and that is probably all you are going to get, get over it.

She has never been our drama queen. She is the straight shooter and whether you want the truth or not, you are going to get the truth. If she is unhappy about something there is nothing in her that has a need to sugar coat it, or hide it. You never have to guess. I have appreciated this aspect of her over the years and have equally been challenged by it as well.

She did learn at the camp, that was "ok" four hundred dollars later "ok", that if she was to pursue photography it would be separate from journalism. She felt the photography you learn to support the journalism endeavor would be just that, supportive photography lessons. She wanted more. I thought this was insightful.

This spring she graduated from West Chester with a High School English teaching certificate. She actually completed everything in August but they let her walk in May. The job market is abysmal. This is unfortunate for some students out there because they might never have Robyn as their teacher.

Robyn's student teaching experience was great. She taught at Darby Middle School, bad section, and was able to maintain good classroom control. You always want to do what Robyn says, she just has an authority about her. I noted this at an early age...
However, with twelve resumes swirling around and no one biting she has realized it is just not meant to be, at least for this year.

This past week Robyn was hired by a newspaper to sell advertising. She might possibly be writing for the food section as well. The four hundred dollar investment for the journalism at Penn State..........you never know!

Phone Calls; Answer or Not?

Picture Credit: Vera Martin's bouquets on reception tables at Robyn and RJ's outdoor wedding reception in our backyard.

We no longer have an answering machine, I hate them, so when the phone rings it is a one shot deal. I really do feel bad if I do not answer. However, when I am in the middle of prime teaching I often just let it ring. My children do not. Today I was blessed they answered.

On the other line was a woman, earlier in the summer, I had been encouraged to call to offer encouragement. Her son, when tested, did not meet the standards that a first grader is expected to meet. He had been at our home school learning group last year and she was putting him in school this year. The woman in charge of the elementary section of our group thought I should give her a ring. "No, I do not do that, she is free to do what she wants." Period.

One morning it was as if I HAD to call her and reassure her that her son was on track for "his" track. We had a great talk. Regardless of their schooling choice I just wanted her to know that she need not worry about test scores! Period. She knows her child better than anyone, even the teacher. Mother's intuition is to be trusted, just relax I told her.

She called this morning. She said she knew I would "get it." Her father died un-expectantly of a heart attack in July, shortly after her and I had talked. After his death there were many things that became apparent. One of them was an understanding of why she home schooled her son last year. Had she not he would not have had the opportunity to spend time with his granddad. She had been so sick and regretted the time wasted on her son's education but now in retrospect saw the beauty of her son's time with his grandparents because of her sickness. It was all making sense even though the loss is profound. She wanted me to know this.

Her son has transitioned well into brick and mortar school. His teacher is a christian who is watching that his little broken heart is cared for. What a relief to his mom. God is good.

We talked of the plans that we have and she said, "But God trumps them all!" Why are we home schooling? We might discover it has nothing to do with what we thought. It just might be for a little boy to spend more time with his grandfather. Will that be revealed on test scores? Not on certain test scores, but the test that matters, you bet ya.

I need to make sure I do not implement hard and fast rules such as not answering the phone during teaching times. I need to be led. Talking with this woman felt as if I had called 1-800-testimony!

The More They Have The More They Want...

Picture Credit: A Highlight for a number of families who have made this a yearly tradition is camping at Poe Paddy. Tubing down the river regardless of the water level is a must. The vacation that we as families spend at Poe Paddy proves less is more and more is less. There are little to no conveniences at Poe Paddy but much more of everything else!

My children will wake up this morning and there will be me to look forward to, seems a bit boring. We will manage to eat breakfast and not necessarily all together. We will then proceed to do our work and that too might look unorganized, but we will do it.
Lunch will quickly approach, sooner in their thoughts than in mine, and we will figure something out to eat. Then we will wind down and the afternoon will be here. What amazes me is that many times they are not bolting at that point. They are content to be with me still.

Over the years I have discovered this piece of information that is only discovered when it happens; the more my children have of me or my husband the more they want of me or my husband. Last year when I clicked off to work at eleven fifteen in the morning they likewise clicked me out of their picture. After working for a couple of months my return home was insignificant, they would not meet me at the door I would have to find them. Of course they would hug or kiss me then but they were following suit.

When I discontinued work they likewise discontinued their nonchalance attitude of my presence, they again wanted to be with me more. This insight into their behavior is so fascinating to me. Yesterday I thought about it again as all three of us were off to purchase cake decorating supplies (minimal decorating supplies, not the real stuff). They are watching "Cake Boss" and convinced this is their destiny. Today we are making fondant. I am sure I have the spelling wrong and my pronunciation of it is continually being corrected. As we are in the store at five o'clock this is what I am thinking, "Why are they so excited about this? Why are they so happy to still be with me?"

Children do not bore of their parents, though society would have you think that. Children love to be with us. The more they have of us the more they want and their ability to adjust to our presence or desire our presence is telling.

Behind the Power Curve

It is nine o'clock on my computer and they are still sleeping. They persuaded me to watch a documentary last night. I chose it. It was on Egyptians'sailing ability rarely highlighted in history books. As I do with most movies/documentaries I slept. When I woke up I suggested we finish it in the morning. They informed me it had just finished. Alright then, how was it? They loved it.

So today they are still sleeping and I just pray no one comes to the door. At least the unfriendly homeschooling sorts. Yesterday I was selling coffee at a local Farmer's Market and Nicole came with me. She told me this was in place of her school. She wondered why I had brought work for her? It just looks good.

Geoffrey stayed home with Jesse and a list of assignments. When I looked over his assignments, uncompleted, he began his reasoning. Yadayadayada! But mom I thought you told me to just read. No Geoff I told you to complete the questions going back into the text for the answer. This is the angst, and if this is the angst, I think I can live with it. I love being with Geoffrey, he is one pleasure, his smile!

So, I have to wake them up and then decide what to do next. Should have thought of that last night, but I was freezing corn. Really wish I could feed them breakfast pills so we could move on with the day. I need good breakfast suggestions!

Constant Activitiy

Picture Credit: Robyn (Burkholder) Saunders posing for her sister Kathryn at Geoff and Cyndi Treichler's wedding in Columbus, Ohio. Robyn is excellent at posing in an interpretive sort of way....

Do my children have too much down time? I am living on a busy street with cars zooming past my kitchen window. The school buses go by every morning and every afternoon. Am I aiding or detracting from my children's childhood by keeping them home? Some would answer it one way and others another.

The culture I am surrounded by is one in which everyone is busy. We are not.
The uneasiness of not being busy enough, of possibly missing something crucial, would it be calmed by jumping into the rushing current the culture is flowing in? Do I need to get my children more involved and if so, in what? I am hounded, hounded I tell you.

The older I become, the longer I have home-schooled the steadier my feet are in the rushing current, however, it is still a current to contend with, still a current that hounds me. Oh, to be unaffected completely that would be marvelous but that is probably something that will not happen while I am still breathing.

The thinkers of the past, what the heck did they do with their time? Descartes spent most of the morning and afternoon in bed initially on account of a weak constitution but then it became his way of studying. He developed the coordinate system as a way of locating a fly on a wall as he was prone in bed. Newton contemplated gravity, contemplated, he took the time to think.

My family is in a society of doers and this is fostered pretty early in life. We are doers in a different way. We do not fill our time with sports and an assortment of outside activities but rather creative outlets. How all of this will be used only God knows. Lynn and I know one thing, we can not live any other way even if we are hounded and tempted to jump into the current rushing in the opposite direction past us!

One Big Obstacle Course!

Picture Credit: Geoffrey Burkholder in one of his contemplative moments, ya gotta be quick with the camera for these moments.

Geoff calls me yesterday while I was at the grocery store. Geoff always calls me with something. He is the boy who wakes up in the morning ready to do whatever we are not doing. He is the boy who is known by many that I might never meet. He is the horse at the gate ready to bolt. Yet he is my guy who will spend half the night talking of deep and contemplative subjects. What a packed kid.

His friend, Evan, calls him after school to tell Geoff that he was in every one of Evan's classes. Great! Here we go. I placed the affadavit (that piece of paper given to a school district stating your intent of homeschooling)in the portfolios. The school district obviously did not see the paper. This is not a problem except that now Geoff thinks he should just go this year and see what it is like. Obstacle.

The processing we had accomplished a couple of weeks ago when I had made an appointment to see the guidance counselor at the Middle school was fading. A couple of days before I planned to see the counselor Geoff decides he would rather stay home this year. He was realizing what he will be missing if he went to school. Now this obstacle is placed right in our path on the first day of homeschooling.

Yesterday it was close. Why not just send him? What is the big deal? These thoughts float in my mind innocuously, innocently not thinking of what has led us to our decision to home school....believing that God led us to this decision.

Staying on course with homeschooling has probably been one of the most challenging things I have yet to do! These obstacles are not something I step over lightly or process carelessly. What if this is meant to be? Am I keeping Geoff from significant opportunities? My mind hurts thinking of all of this! What if, what if, what if? I have said it and I will say it again; swimming upstream against the culture is really hard. Why can't Lynn and I just live like the rest?

God has led us to home school and for now this is what we are to do, I think...........I know, I hope, I pray. Would you pray for me?

To Lead or Be Led? This is the Question.

Picture Credit: Jesse Burkholder, an industrious and busy guy. Can you trust him to clean your car? Does Bob Treichler own a vacumm? That should tell ya!



"Chris, you can fit everything into your Chevette and what you can not fit, come back for it next weekend." With that sentence I retrieved sanity into our first day of home schooling for the 2010-2011 year. Chris agreed and it meant he could leave whenever he wanted, we were all happy.

Last night as I was saying goodnight to Jesse he adamantly requested that tomorrow he be signed up for school, "seriously, mom!" What about when he is seven, can he then? Eight? Nine? Ten? Thirty? Absolutely, thirty sounds great. There are days when I wonder what provokes me to home school, a masochistic sense about me?

Nicole came into my bedroom with a clipboard in tow, I am in bed she is obviously not. "Mom, tomorrow I need for you to wake me up before the boys. Do whatever you need to do, shake me, whatever. I want to be finished early. I want to start with math, then science, then reading, then history."

It is hard to doze off with the fourth grader drill Sargent barking out my orders. Does she realize I am not prepared for anything. But I think she is on to something, she is taking charge of her education, pushing me to push her. I am being led. The question is this? Will I allow my children to lead or will I take up the reigns and make them follow me? What is education all about? At the end of my bed I am witnessing the beauty of homeschooling. Oh, God, please let me follow.

I am not really worried about what I am teaching these children,I am convinced I can give out Master Degrees with all the curriculum I have accumulated over the years of homeschooling.This morning I pulled off the shelves curriculum that looked fitting. Curriculum is never wasted! Even if you sell it at your garage sale, someone like me is buying it and using it somewhere along the line.

I love Latin and every year I try to do something with it! I was never good at Latin in all three years of it at Barrington Highschool. The Ivy league bound kids sitting next to me were,but still I loved it. I am determined with these last three to instill a love for it in them. Geoffrey today translating sentences looks up at me and says, "Why are we studying a language that is never spoken?" This is the age old question that plagues many Latin students.

Thank you for the question, Geoff. Latin derivatives in our English language are a dime a dozen! If you know Latin you are able to define words you had never seen before, besides which it is quite easy to learn........I'm sure.

Let us hope that this year will be a year in which I see the beauty of being led. I am also hoping that this is the year I actually keep my cool. Oh, let's hope!

Let's Begin Another Year of Homeschooling, Shall We?

Blogging is a love hate relationship I have going. Last year I began writing to the President. I emailed him the same letters you see posted on my blog. Of course he never responded but that is not why I wrote him. I needed to keep my heart soft towards this man who seemed to be an impostor. It worked but like many things I bored of it.

As a new "school year" approaches I am talking with many who are doing the same thing I am doing, homeschooling their children. I decided I would go "really" public with my homeschooling. I will let you in on my muddled, opinionated, uncertain, and oft-times completely certain views, impressions, feelings and opinions of home schooling.

I have three older children, one graduated from West Chester this spring, summa cum laude with a teaching degree in High School English. The other begins his third year in college and second year at Kutztown University majoring in music and considering music therapy, and that is still out for grabs. My third oldest is a freshman at Reading Area Community College hoping to study Nursing but presently there is a waiting list for that major.

I have Geoff, my new teenager, entering into eighth grade. Nicole my nine year old will be doing fourth grade work (whatever that means). My youngest, Jesse, I will have the privilege of teaching him to read. Out of all my children, Jesse will be doing the most important work this year. Learning to read is quintessential to learning. If approached with more excitement from the trainer than the trainee there could be potential repercussions, negative repercussions. If the trainee is not being delivered goods when they are ready, shame on the trainer. This is a big year for Jesse and I, finding the right balance.

A couple of years ago on an early morning walk I told God this,"You have to let me know if I should still home school." I was tired of the insecurity I had been plagued with though at that point I had home schooled for eighteen years. The answer I heard loud and clear in my spirit was this, "JUST DO IT." I knew what he meant. The proof,at that point, was in the pudding, two in college and one doing fine in home school high school. But insecurity is never assured by accomplishments it seems.
Why I leave asking God for assurance to the last, I will never know. With those three words, "Just do it" I knew I was doing what I should be doing.

To "Just do it" I needed to say goodbye to the standard I had been using. Sometimes we need to asses what is the standard that we are either being hounded by relentlessly or that we should be using. The educational system as we know it in the U.S.A. is what needed to go. The home school philosophy written by many veteran home schoolers such as Raymond and Dorothy Moore is what I needed to be guided by. However, it was Jesus who needed to be the main educational guide and to Him I needed to direct all my questions knowing He had all the answers.

What relief "Just Do It" has brought to our home school scene is ridiculous almost. Why had I labored so long with such misguided misconceptions? My high schooler who rarely was given math assignments because she was not cooperative with the assignments was thriving in her high school algebra class. We played math games in her elementary years and I always hung my head low from not giving her one hundred problems a day out of the Math text book. God yelled at me, "Look, all you needed to do was play math with her, remember that with your three younger children!" That almost did not seem right, but I had living proof of the results.

Surely my three younger children need to benefit from what my older children have plowed through. Tomorrow I will begin home schooling and here is one of the things I have learned. Flexibility is key and tomorrow will be no exception. My son, Chris, just asked me after church to bring him to college in the morning as opposed to his Dad bringing him today. There goes my desire to get on a schedule. Schedule/schmedule is what I hear God chanting. "But God, you are the one who introduced ORDER!" He is smirking at me. He knows I know we are not talking about order now, we are talking about priorities.

So tomorrow I will start after I return....and deal with the list of things that are occupying my mind such as; I should really do some canning, want to weed the garden, need to clean the garage, need to organize the basement, need to make sense of my room, need to order the children to clean their rooms, need to work on a website, need to plan the class I am teaching at our home school Learning Group,do I have enough breakfast fixings, what to make for lunch, what do I want to teach these three kids this year????????

This is enough to fill a number of brains, why just mine? But if you are a home schooler you know what I am talking about. We have taken on Herculean tasks and sometimes we wonder why we are trying to defy gravity and the laws of nature?! But this is what motivates me, Man I like being with my children and learning with them is extraordinary and having them want to learn with me is marvelous and.......I have three older children who managed to come out of our home school program with baggage of course but maybe we could call it "Carry On" luggage.

Tomorrow I hope to do some math, Latin, reading, and planning. I will let you know how it goes~!

I leave you with this: We are all homeschoolers even if you send your child to school. We all need to know what our children's learning style is, are they learning, what should they be learning and how can we help them. We need to be part of the process. The question for many of us to ask however is this, what truly is education?

The Ruler Who Misunderstood

Dear Mr. President,

Christmas is just two days away. The day we celebrate the King of all King's birthday, the King that is above all people in authority as we speak. A star tracked by the wise men of the day was their GPS indicating the location of this auspicious individual, the GodMan.

The ruler in power at that time spoke out of both sides of his mouth. He directed the wise men to come for a meeting. Where is this baby? Of course the ruler did not want to convey his intense jeaoulousy, concern, and horror at the news of this baby so instead he directed the wise men to come back and relay all that they discovered about this "Babyking." The ruler conveyed interest and concern atop intense hatred, fear, and utter jealousy.

What the ruler was remiss in understanding, due to his lack of wisdom or wise men surrounding him, was his inability to do diddlysquat about this "Babyking" born to save the world. The men from the East who had followed the star were guided in a dream, not a memo, not an official letter, a dream, to not obey the ruler of the land but to obey the orders given via a dream.

Everything was done via visions,dreams and encounters with intense spiritual beings. Directions were given within the spirit, a place of protection, a hidden spot, no hidden microphones. The "Babyking's" stepfather was receiving these visions that today might be relegated to the lunacy bin of information. But this man had already been visited by an angel and he knew, oh, he knew!

The ruler did not understand that though man has many plans within his heart, many views about how things should be done, God's purpose will prevail! The ruler wanted all power, thought he had all power, and understood not how very little power he actually did have. Out of the intensity of his misunderstandings fueled by his jealousy he directed all the boys ranging from the age of two and under to be executed. Pro-death to all potential rulers could have been his motto.

God's purpose prevailed and the "Babyking" survived only to be disgracefully executed in his early thirties after having fulfilled every single prophecy uttered hundreds of years prior to his birth. He was executed unjustly having overcome every temptation man has every suffered. His final hour was an hour of accusation for everything he had never done! All the evil of the world was thrown on him.

The Pro-death king was unable to kill this baby because God's purpose was for this baby to live to die. This baby grew to be the wisest man ever and the most loving man. Wisdom and love go hand in hand. You want to view a wiseman, go find the most loving man. This baby was meant to die. His death in his early thirties gave you and I the option of living free.

Have yourself a Merry Christmas, President Obama. Throw away any jealousy, any need to control, and reveal in all that the "Babyking" accomplished! May your children enjoy their first Christmas in the WhiteHouse!

Anytime you feel like something HAS to be pushed through...........think again.

Blessings!

Lynne

What about these seven story lines?

Dear Mr. President,

Good morning to you. I trust your Thanksgiving was spent reviewing the reasons this country first celebrated this holiday. Our nation has much to be thankful for, much to be forgiven for, much to strive for, and much to learn. But we should never stop being grateful for all that we have.

Do you, Mr. President, actively thank God for this nation? I heard you talk about this nation in terms that made me shudder. You stated this is not a christian nation anymore. When did that happen? Who wrote that script for you? What do you stand for, what do you appreciate? Why were you motiviated to become the president, what is your desire for the United States of America?

I just read an article that listed seven story lines that would not be favorable to your politicial scene if the media ran with these seven story lines. I'll list John Harris' list for you to read: (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1109/29993.html)

1.You think you are playing with monopoly money.
2.You can describe the nuances of problems but your lack of experience
renders you useless when it comes to understanding the real life issues.
When former president Bill Clinton would say, "I feel your pain." Though it
was seemingly a pat answer it truly was grounded in a true understanding of
many people's situations because of his experience of 8 years as a governor.
Mr. President,you don't have any previous real life experience that trained
you for your new position.
3.That's the Chicago way You are not really interested in a non-
partisan government. You and your administration are "dominated by brass-
nuckled polls.
4. You are a pushover. You have nothing to show for your time in
the office thus far.
5. You see America as another pleasant country on the U.N. roll call,
somewhere between Albania and Zimbabwe.
6.President Pelois. This woman has had more success than you.
7.You're in love with the man in the mirror.

All of the above potential story lines could be used against you. Which of them have any merit? Which of them do you agree with,and which of them can you throw onto the heap of human perceptions?

Mr. President, look to the One and Only source for guiding the remainder of your days in the White House.

Sincerely,

Lynne T. Burkholder

Anthropogenic, Do You Know What That Means?

Dear Mr. President,

Wow! I just scanned the Copenhagan Treaty. It felt as if I was walking through a sterile metallic hall squinting through small windows of steel doorways. There is not a sound in the hall. The only sound is the poor fellow escorted to the exit door. Too many beans last night and this treaty requires complete compliance. Reading the treaty was akin to reading the scariest SciFi Novel ever produced, it lulls you along with a monotonous tone deceiving you to believe that there is no vile, no evil intentions here. But as you read you hear the crescendo of the dull, faint scream in the background.

It was the YouTube clip that first informed me of this treaty. "On October 14, Lord Christopher Monckton, a noted climate change skeptic, gave a presentation at Bethel University in St. Paul, MN." I felt like I was getting my info from tabloids..........However, it lead me to the actual treaty that has been posted online. Of course the language was written by a committee who took delight in expressing themselves in humdrum, coded language that is an attempt to leave you feeling dumb but I'm way smarter than that.

This honestly has "smart" people behind it? The essence of this treaty is "to prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system in a timely manner." Got that? Anthropogenic seems to be the buzz word. Anthropogenic emissions, now that's a phrase that will surely have your tongue tied but will untie your pocket book strings. WHERE ARE THE WISE MEN OF THE WORLD? I know where they are not! Behind the closed doors that cloistered this committee!

So, this has me on a quest to learn more. The sterile poppycock will take some decoding! First, I discover that the term, anthropogenic, "designates an effect or object resulting from human activity." This term is derived from Paul Crutzenan's term, "anthropocene" he first used in the mid-1970's. Paul is an atmospheric scientist. Two other men, Sherwood Rowling and Mario Molina "published a series of articles putting forward the idea of the impact of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)on the stratospheric ozone." So now we have a new word, anthropogenic- the pollution emissions produced as a result of human industry. (thanks to Wikipedia)

The group of people who came up with this treaty are looking for carbon levels that reflect the pre-industrial period. We can all be re-enactors now! Honestly, honestly, honestly, thank you for whatever your administration did to put off the signing of this stupidity. May you and your administration do everything in your power to see that this treaty is disposed of and don't worry about how you do it. Any emissions from the burning of this treaty will fill the air with more wisdom than carbon. Go ahead do it while you still have the freedom.

The site where I read the treaty was http://assets.panda.org/downloads/treaty_vol2_web_compl.pdf and the YouTube clip was from http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=copenhagan+treaty&search_type=&aq=f This should provide one with some entertainment, treaty and YouTube, and in that order!

Mr. President, scanning this treaty I couldn't help but stumble over this in the treaty, USD 160 Billion. Am I correct in assigning U to United, S to States, and D to Dollar? I believe the group that wrote the treaty are men and women looking for a job, there's an abundance of homo sapiens looking for cash. A cash for carbon progam in the making.

Keep your chin up, don't wade through this muck losing your dignity!

Blessings on your day,

Lynne Burkholder

My Eight Year Old Daughter

Dear Mr. President,

My eight year old daughter after listening to a speaker from another country describe the Copenhagan Treaty put her hand to her chest and uttered, "Freedom is what we have here, and now that is going to be taken away?" As I reflect on her statement, knowing that someday she will be a problem solver, I wonder what her response will be when she discovers that Malia and Sasha's daddy supports abortion and in essence supports taking away the freedom to live when that person is not fully developed?

Nicole understands on a black and white level what abortion is, the ending of a life. We believe, in this family of six children, that you become a person at conception. It takes a mighty amount of arrogance for any person to think they KNOW when a person becomes a person. What a mystery the beginning of life is.

Does that cell at conception look like a person? Of course not. Does this mean you're not a person? Who am I to make a reasonable judgment about this and further more who is anyone to err on the side of "maybe not." Are you developing into a person in a mother's womb, yes we know this for a fact because if you and I heard the correct version of the birds and the bees this is where we have are start. All of my children started small and undetected.

When an abortion occurs it many times is beyond this point and at a time when an actual being is seen but still in development, not looking like it will look. Somehow, a number of people have felt the "freedom" to tamper with this fetus in development. I know that you and I don't need to go any further with this. You will believe what you will and though you say we share the same faith we definitely diverge on the sanctity of life, for this is truly the issue, how we view the preciousness of life at all stages. It boils down to honoring one another. You have made a definite decision as to when you believe honor is appropriate and I have made a definite decision as well.

Mr. President, I want this to keep you up at night. I will pray towards this end. I will pray for dreams and visions for you during the night that will challenge your status quo. May you wake up with a reverence for life. May you look at your daughters and shudder knowing that there are millions of little girls and little boys with the same uniqueness and specialness that never saw the light of day because someone exercised THEIR choice against theirs. You and many others don't have me or the pro-lifers to answer to,it will be God.

Enjoy the day with your children. Look at them and admire their beauty, wit, charm,and uniqueness. Why would you be on the side where appreciation for this runs thin. There is much laughter in our home and I am beyond delighted that my children will never consider tampering with human life. They will err on the side of honoring life.

May your day be filled with unexpected views of God's wisdom! Blessings to you and my prayers are with you. May your presidency find success as you ponder the essence of true life and come to an understanding of freedom.
Sincerely,

Lynne

Oldest Document

Dear Mr. President,

Have you studied one of the oldest documents STILL in existence? This ancient document that has survived for us today is one which I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, would assist you in your presidency.

First, the wording is not political jargon that leaves one shaking their head wondering why the confusion? Second, it goes all the way back, kinda James Michener style, to the beginning of time revealing why we are in the mess we are in. Third, it goes all the way to the end, the end of life as we now know it.

History is revealed in completeness in this document zooming to the fullness of time. You, as the President, will be awed as to your position, you have been put in place by the one and only God of the universe. Humbling when many and possibly you were duped into thinking it was just your amazing ability to plug into the social media of the day.

You have some significant people, will not mention names, threatening you and pushing you to take sides. You and I both know the side which you need to support and an in depth study of scripture will confirm that. You do not want to mess with the God of the universe, with His chosen people. It is a mystery, one in which I am baffled by but also propelled by as I continue to discover His plan for them while I study scripture.

Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. This will happen, it is not a question of if but when. As I type this I begin to feel like the church lady satirized on Saturday Night Live. I do a good impression of her, however this will not be a funny skit when we watch every knee bow and confess. At that time there will be judgment.

The time will come when the Righteous judgment will assess our alignments, where our hearts are poised and lead by, and this will happen when everyone will be acknowledging that God is God and that His son Jesus is God. Decisions will not be made at this point, there will be no turning back.

Finding the Wise Men, Mr. President?

Sincerely,

Lynne T. Burkholder

Mr. President,

It has been too long since I've penned you. When I fail to write you daily, I fail to keep you in my prayers and I fail to keep current with the latest. As you swirl through your day I have something for you to keep in mind. You are in a position that is still revered, a position of authority over the United States. Will this always be a revered position? That I believe is up to you.

Former President Clinton certainly did not do his fair share of raising the bar while in office. They say that he left the White House in shambles and the amount of cleaning alone that was required was indicative of the level of respect his administration had for their positions of authority. How will it end for you?

I need to tell you that I am on a countdown, similar to the one that starts twenty-five days before Christmas. I ask myself, "when is the next election?" I shake my head when I realize that not even a year has passed. It seems like eternity. The confusion I believe stems from the parties preparing earlier than normal. Instead of a two year campaign it looks like it will be a three and a half year campaign. Why the early campaigning? What is it about your administration that has caused this early start? Have you delivered unrest instead of change?

Your presidency has certainly brought much to the forefront and for that I am grateful. The republican party is undergoing a major reassessment and one can only hope that the party will be better for it! But I ask you, how will it end for you? Will you leave knowing that you raised the bar for the position of authority you now hold? Or will you bring it down a notch like Clinton did?

How can you manage to leave and still remain a positive political figure as I believe former president Ronald Reagan was able to do. I watched his October 1964 speech titled, "A Time for Choosing" and was inspired, awed, ready for the fight. Have you listened to this speech? It might be time to watch it again.

Please, Mr. President, take time now to view this speech and require your family, your administration, and maybe even your dog to watch. Determine to leave the White House a better place because you were there!

Have a nice day! Remember to revere life, learn to revere life.

Sincerely,

Lynne Burkholder

Resignation Letter of Weight

Matt P. Hoh, a Senior Civilian Representative stationed in Zabul, Afghanistan resigned September 10, 2009. Riveting... He states,"We want to have some kind of governance there, and we have some obligation for it not to be a bloodbath," Hoh said. "But you have to draw the line somewhere, and say this is their problem to solve."

The people of Korengal did not want the American troops. "The insurgency appeared to have arrived in strength only after the Americans did, and the battle between the two forces had achieved only a bloody stalemate."

In the article from the Washington post it states, "If the United States is to remain in Afghanistan, Hoh said, he would advise a reduction in combat forces." The article goes on to say "he also would suggest providing more support for Pakistan, better U.S. communication and propaganda skills to match those of al-Qaeda, and more pressure on Afghan President Hamid Karzai to clean up government corruption -- all options being discussed in White House deliberations."

" 'We are spending ourselves into oblivion' a very talented and intelligent commander, one of America's best, briefs every visitor, staff delegation and senior officer. We are mortgaging our Nation's economy on a war, which, even with increased commitment, will remain a draw for a few years to come. Success and victory, whatever they may be, will be realized not in years, after billions more spent, but in decades and generations. The United States does not enjoy a national treasury for such success and victory."

Thank you, Antony Blinkin,Vice President Biden's foreign policy advisor,for requesting a meeting with Matt P. Hoh. Thank you, White House Administration for taking this resignation letter seriously. Thank you, Matt P. Hoh for conducting your life in such a way you are heard for such a time as this. May we listen.

Mr. President, continue to listen to intelligent, thoughtful, people such as Mr. Matt P. Hoh. I would also suggest conducting a meeting with men and women who have served their lives for the Afghanistan people in a capacity other than combat. A variety of people lend to more wisdom.

Matt P. Hoh ends his resignation letter with a boulder, "The dead return only in bodily form to be received by families who must be reassured their dead have sacrificed for a purpose worthy of futures lost, love vanished, and promised dreams unkept. I have lost confidence such assurances can anymore be made. As such , I submit my resignation."

I can not get this part of his letter out of my head.

May the God of long suffering, redemption, and mercy lead and guide the land of the United States!

Mr. President, you have so much to consider, my prayers are with you!

Sincerely,

Lynne Burkholder

If you want to view Matt P. Hoh's resignation letter go to this web address and find a link to the letter: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/26/AR2009102603394_2.html?hpid=topnews&sid=ST2009102603447