So, I'm sending my firstborn son to school. A brick and mortar one. Me, a 1st generation homeschooler teaching the 2nd generation.
I've said things like "We'll send them to school if that's what's best for them." Lies. All lies. See, I never thought it would be what was best for them because I believe in homeschooling. I figured no matter what, we could make it work.
But then David came to me a month after I'd started our new school year and said, "I think we should pray about sending Seth to school." Insert mouth dropping open. I was just a wee bit stunned. But he had good reasons. He'd been reading a book on adolescent boy development, and he had subbed for me on a rough day, and he thought that Seth might need to see that he could conquer the school mountain.
He spent time praying over this, and he did the research on our available options. I stayed out of it and just struggled emotionally. I will tell y'all right now that moving my whole family to Asia was easier on me than considering sending one of my children to school. See, I figured we were doing this whole world schooling thing, and no matter what, at least we'd be together.
But world schooling is hard when you live in a city with the 3rd worst traffic in the entire world. Traffic will kill your field trip and outside class hopes and dreams faster than you can say "rain on a Friday payday." We weren't getting out as much to see and do as I'd hoped, and he wasn't stretching his wings quite like I'd hoped would happen.
His faith is strong, and he talks to us about the thoughts going through his head. So I figured, ok, maybe he'd be alright. We visited a small British international school. And now he's riding the school van and holding his own in his class. It's been 3 weeks, and at his term parent teacher conference, it was clear that his teachers like him and enjoy having him there. His history teacher said he might even be a bit bored because he knows so much. His science teacher said his science foundation was solid and that he didn't have anything he could improve on. :)
I've seen his confidence really go up. Sure, he's lost a ridiculous amount of things since he started school, but that number has started to go down. He's making friends with the other boys in his class, and I see him taking hold of independence in a way that he wasn't doing here with me. His appreciation for his brothers is at an all time high, and he's doing his devotions on the school van every morning because he says that starting his day that way helps him.
His best friend at school is an American boy in his class. I realized I knew his mom from a Christian expat ladies group. This boy was even homeschooled for a couple of years. God provides.
The Sunday before he started school, the sermon at church was on worrying. And boy was I ever worrying. I knew that God was telling me to stop worrying. He has this. He has my son, and He always has had him. I've never really been in control, but I realize that more than ever now.
It's hard for me to give up my best student so much of the time. I really do miss him. I don't want to plan field trips yet because I don't want to do something he'll miss out on. I'm sure that'll be better in time. I'm thankful that he argues strongly that he wants to go back to homeschooling when we go back to the U.S., but I know that he's also happy at school.
It seems like we're doing what God thinks we need to do for now.
And maybe when we come back, Seth will speak some of that Mandarin all the students are having to learn, and he'll also gain some delightful British words from all his thoroughly British teachers. Christmas Jumper Day, anyone? :)
