Mom and Homeschool

I've had several conversations this evening about homeschool vs. public school. I'm still trying to figure out my own personal opinions on the subject, but there is one memory that always comes to mind when I talk about homeschool that I want to share. Being a homeschooled kid wasn't always easy. Staying at home while all my friends went to public school was confusing, and sometimes I wished I could go too. I asked mom her reasons for homeschooling on a regular basis. At this particular time I was beginning to notice comments of parents in books, on tv, and in my life about that wonderful time of day when kids are in school and they had time to themselves. Often when adults mom associated with found out she homeschooled us they would say, "oh, I could never do that." Subtly I began to wonder if mom felt burdened having us "in her hair" all day.

I don't think I was thinking about that when I asked her this time, but her response quickly swept away these doubts. In effect she said, "I homeschool you because I'm selfish. I could not stand being away from you for six hours everyday. What would I do without my children with me?" Well, we all know there are many things mom could have done with that time. She was a registered nurse, she was running a household of ten, she was in the stake primary presidency, she could take free classes at BYU, etc. But as much as she would have loved to focus on those things, we were her number one priority. I think it broke her heart a little each time she sent one of us to public school, but she believed it was best for us to go in when we did.

Looking back, this single incident had a huge impact on my life. Knowing that mom loved me so much that, all aspects of duty and responsibility set aside, she simply loved being around me as a person changed the way I saw myself. I felt loved and important because her actions reflected those words. This is one of my favorite memories of mom.