November 16, 2003

Juggling!

No, this is not a new extracurricular activity in our household! The juggling I'm referring to is that of all the numerous things we home school moms have to keep up with. Not only do we have to plan our children's studies, direct their studies, and assess their work, we have to shuttle them to and from piano lessons and karate lessons and choir rehearsals. That's on top of all the other things we, as wives and mothers have to manage, like: laundry, grocery buying, house cleaning, bill-paying (for some). And let's not forget that our children still want fun, quality time with us, and our husbands, well, they want their share of us too! Then if we're lucky--and really good at juggling--we can have a social life as well: time with friends and extended family members is important too.

The cherry on top (for me at least) would be some quiet time alone or lunch with a friend--which is almost unheard of these days!

Though it sounds like I'm complaining, I'm not, really. I guess what I'm trying to accomplish here is a validation process that what we (as home school moms) do is substantial! While we most always answer "no" when asked do we work, (meaning, do we work at an outside a job where we get to wear nice clothes, be around grown-ups all day, and get a paycheck for it), no, in all honesty we don't work in that sense. But we do work! And very hard, at that.

At least, at the end of the day, when there's more work to be done than there is time to get it done in, we can (hopefully) look into the sweet faces of our children and know that, while we may not be finding a cure for cancer or advising the President of the United States, we are shaping the lives of some pretty important people. And who knows, someday maybe they will find a cure for cancer or be the President of the United States!

No, what we're devoting our lives to is not an insignificant thing. Ours is a worthwhile "profession" if ever there was one!

So next time you feel a bit overwhelmed by all the "balls" you have to juggle, try looking into the eyes of your children and see what really matters most. (Excuse me while I go take my own advice...!)