The healing journey of a widowed, unschooling badass in Delaware.
I’ve removed myself almost entirely from the consumption of corporate media. There isn’t enough truth in any of their story telling to make it worth my time.
Their focus is always designed to divert attention away from the crimes of the powerful against the powerless (e.g., Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial).
Tom Woods is dedicated to the truth and here interviews Jason Fink, a filmmaker and eye witness to the events of January 6th, 2021: The Regime’s Obsession with January 6.
Alex Berenson has been tireless in fighting the detrimental narratives of governments and corporate media.
He’s now helping to expose the danger that the Covid vaccines are presenting to male fertility.
I hope parents consider this data and the myocarditis risk and refuse to give into the pressure to vaccinate their children.
URGENT: The Covid vaccine paper on declining sperm counts is even worse than it seems at…
Two soccer games, a confetti (Thank You God it wasn’t glitter) bomb, a lovingly prepared picnic at Winterthur, a visit with my grandparents, and an evening fire made for the best Father’s Day ever.
We needed a change. My sons haven’t been respectful and I wasn’t setting and sticking to proper boundaries.
I took all our social engagements off the calendar, disallowed screen time, and limited their freedom to within my earshot at all times. It was drastic, but I needed them to focus on simple responsibilities this week. Without the distractions, I was able to hold them accountable to the help I was asking for.
There was a rough start to the week, but they soon settled into a helpful rhythm. Moments of rest were peacefully filled with boardgames and Lego play.
They’re too good at this analog life and it was beautiful to watch them entertain themselves. We rediscovered a couple of their mom’s t-shirts and enjoyed new and familiar boardgames.
A small part of me wanted this week to be painful. I wanted them to fear losing all their privileges.
Instead, they got to see that taking responsibility for small things can bring more peace and fun to our time together.
I’ll take that kind of backfire any day.
Westen has been training in the adult program at Elevated Studios for a few weeks.
He was rewarded for his hard work with what will be his final youth belt. He’s gone without earning a youth belt for a long time. Once he realized that it meant little towards his eventual adult promotions, he stopped completing the tests for stripes and belts. He no longer needed the outward signal of his experience, he showed it in his performance and mentoring of newer students.
I’m so proud of this little guy, he’s undaunted by his size and he is a force in the adult program.
Two years ago we started Allschoolers. Every homeschool group in Delaware had stopped meeting in accordance with government dictates and a small number of families insisted that our children needed to be outside with friends. We consisted of more than just homeschoolers. “Virtual, “crisis,” and “temporary” public and private schoolers joined us from the start. We chose the name “Allschoolers” to ensure that what we were providing was available to all families who felt the same needs.
I was poking around some of the admin tools on Facebook today and I’d like to share some of the exciting and illuminating statistics I found.
We’re nearly at 800 members! Most all them are Delaware residents and represent an entire family that participates in our meets.
I do not know how Facebook defines “active,” but we are regularly reaching hundreds of families with our posts and an increasing number of members are sharing events, pictures, and insights. Only one of the top posts was written by an administrator, another encouragement for me as I hope to steward a community full of leaders. Three of the top posts are turning into new in-person events arranged by members.
I didn’t have to cherry pick stats, every metric demonstrates an engaged, growing, and local community.
I’ve joked about being in the 1% of home educators as a dad at the head of our educational helm and it is great to see that I’m in more of the 5-6% range! These dads are super active and an important part of our group. Our focus is always on inclusion and being a place where dads step up and participate isn’t terribly common in homeschooling circles (anectodally speaking, that is).
“Diversity” can be a loaded term, but for our little state, it seems like we are attracting people from all over. It’s exciting to meet new people and learn about all the different approaches to home education that families are employing.
I was a naysayer from the start of this project, but it did seem worth a shot when everything had changed for the worse. I’m so glad that I was so wrong. We’ve created something special and each new member brings an important piece to our community.
I haven’t listened to Colion Noir before, but in this conversation with Joe Rogan he lays out some important statistics about gun violence in the United States.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4ban3bST08sgRCyDuI8gFJ?si=DNlZUqKtRxe2lTpBMaAUeQ&utm_source=native-share-menu
“What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
–Luke 11:11-13 RSV
They may not appreciate it in this moment, but this week I am giving my sons the gift of responsibility.
Since losing their mother I have often chosen peace over consequences. I have taken on extra work when I should have held them accountable. I have let things go when my energy waned and I didn’t want them to hate me.
My peaceful parenting has got to evolve. It’s time to quietly demand more respect and responsibility from my children. I’ve earned it and they will benefit greatly from claiming their stake in our lives.
Disclosure: The links below are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
The Zerbeys are having a stripped-down, analog week.
Today we visited the Little Libraries in our neighborhood and topped them off with books from our collection. We were successful in unloading an entire crate and only came home with two new finds.
This is how God loved the world: He gave his own one and only son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
-John 3:16 NLT
For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.
-John 3:17 RSV
Jesus came to save, not condemn.
Condemnation is hot right now. Social sins are condemned and people are ostracized for the moral failings.
Maybe we can be more like Jesus and work to save rather than reproach.
Disclosure: The links below are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.