31 Days of 5-Minute Free-Writes

Day 1: Story

Kate Motaung, host of Five-Minute Friday, has now challenged us to 31 Days of Five-Minute Free Writes, in which we will explore the telling of our story. This isn’t the first such challenge, but it is the first for me.

For the past fourteen years I’ve been gathering notes for a story about our homeschool experience, and it is nearly ready for birth. My story has been through revision after revision. Twice it has been scrutinized by my editor. Now the only thing holding me back is fear—fear that no one will want to buy it and read it. And that is mostly because no one knows it exists.

So I have decided to take the next 31 days to introduce you to my story. It is time for me to be vulnerable. If my book is my baby, then this is my baby shower, and you are all invited. So grab a plate of finger food and a cup of punch, then take a seat and let the party begin!

Thank you very much for being here. Your presence means the world to me!

Photos will come later, but for now I’ll tell you the title and a brief synopsis. My “baby” is called Reflections of a Mother’s Heart. It is a collection of 45 anecdotes, poems, and Scripture verses from the earliest years of our family’s home school experience.

In this volume I talk about how my husband and I came to the decision to educate our children at home, some of the funny moments, and a few moments that are funny now that we can look back on them. Most of the anecdotes come straight from the children’s mouths (“Things Kids Say”), but a few are things that they did. The Scripture verses are sometimes from our family devotions and sometimes from my personal quiet time. Every page has yielded a fond memory for us, but has also been an encouragement to others with whom we have shared it through the years. For this reason, I have sought to collect these pieces and share them on a larger scale.

My intention is to create multiple volumes that will eventually cover all the years from early childhood through college, and even include anecdotes sent to me from my readers. I chose a rather broad title because we did not home school from start to finish, but actually experienced all the possibilities: home education, Christian education, and public education. For this reason, mothers from many walks will be able to identify with the stories contained in my journals.

This is my story. What’s yours?