As a film guy, I like movies. I recently watched yet another apocalyptic film. I think it shed some light on what's behind the comment, "I could never spend all day with my kids!" You ready for this?
The movie isn't important. The setting is a little semi-self-sustaining cottage in the mountains run by a hippy and his wife. The "end of the world" happens when a computer thing goes batty, and now the house is full of six frenemies whose history and future provide the backdrop for the unfolding drama. We learn all about their past issues and current differences. Relationships form and others shatter. The close proximity, the stress of the situation, and the lack of connection and trust make certain interactions incredibly abrasive.
You've experienced that, right? In your homeschool, especially if you've "brought your kids home" after having them in school for a while, there's a certain tension. In many ways, you have catching up to do with your kids. I've detailed my own experiences with this when we had the girls for 9-months. I am all too aware of how close proximity, stressful situations, and a lack of connection and trust makes things abrasively miserable.
The End of the World?
But the movie doesn't end there. Neither should we.
By the end of the film, a new fledgling community has sprouted. People work together. Grace has been extended and accepted. Smoke still billows in the distance, but the freshly tilled earth, the laughter of children, and the beauty of friendships shines across the screen.
So, yes, sometimes homeschooling can feel like an apocalypse. There are periods where we feel trapped by the work and uncomfortably close. But what we're building is, literally, the future of humanity. And for all the struggle, it's beautiful in the end.
~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Pseudo-Dad
Anna's post But I Can't be with My Children All Day Long Every Day! inspired this one. Check it out.
