Everyone you meet is a potential teacher

As I was paddling around at the foot of Angel Falls this morning,  (I confessed on Facebook that when I’m swimming laps, I imagine I’m in South America but don’t tell anyone,) I was concentrating on my stroke.  Keep your head low….watch your stroke….
And I remembered Scott.  Scott was a tri-athlete that used to work [...]

The Horse Boy

You know a book has to intrigue me when I buy a hard back copy.  (Okay, so I bought it at Costco so I’m not a *complete* tight wad.)
This is the story of Rupert Isaacson and his crazy vision to travel to Mongolia to consult with shamans to heal his son of autism.  (And yes, [...]

Conform! Comply! Die.

I’ve long contended that most people shut down and die sometime between 5th and 8th grade. Those middle school years, in my opinion, are when the pressures to conform are greatest. Hormones are surging and the sorting process that takes place through the mechanism of institutionalized schooling is becoming more apparent.
God forbid you should stand [...]

“That child needs to be in school….” another thought

I wanted to add a comment that my friend, Dan Miller made over at my blog at 48days.net.   Over the years he has helped many, many people find work that they love through his career coaching and best selling books.   I love Dan’s perspective here:
Theresa – I’m delighted to read about Daniel’s adventures there at [...]

“That child needs to be in school…”

…..and be on medication.”  That’s what a developmental pediatrician told me and Jay several years ago about Daniel.
She scared the hell out of me.  I knew in my heart of hearts that school would be very destructive to Daniel.  But she was the one with all the degrees and initials, right?  The boy had obvious [...]

Is school interfering with your kid’s education?

After our 4-H meeting the other day, Daniel had mini-workshop on electricity.  And like usual, there was a flock of boys and even a few girls excitedly gathered around him.  They experimented with lighting up diodes and making small motor spins.  And then there was Daniel’s “The World’s Smallest TV” which is, yes indeed, a [...]

The irrelevance of school

I love it when something your thinking about keeps surfacing in different ways and allows your thoughts on it to grow and develop until it coalesces in a big “AHA!”   Sort of like a Woodstock moment without the drugs?
Well, that first statement probably sounds like I have been on drugs so let me better explain.
I’ve [...]

The messiness of genius

The other day I asked Daniel to straighten out the tangle of chords that threatened to take over the living room.  The DSL line, the phone line, the extra length of the phone line, the lamp, the……
And in typical Daniel fashion, he attacked the task with gusto.  “Here ya go, mom!” he announced later with [...]

Do hens go to egg laying school?

Yep, I know silly question.  Such is my brain to ponder random questions.  Of course hens don’t have to learn how to lay eggs….they’re hens!  The doing arises from their being.
Same for our kids.  We spend so much time insisting that they DO things before we’ve evaluated WHO is my child?  But yet in our [...]

ADHD and tired parents

Every so often I get emails from parents looking for a word of help or encouragement.  The stories are shockingly similar and usually revolve around a frustrating situation at school.  Perhaps they’ve been ambushed a  teacher or two insisting their kid needs medication….or the attentional issues keep the kid in constant trouble.  (And my heart [...]