Thanks for the pep talk, as well as your helpful quiz. Great to know we’ll probably be ok! We’re heading back into the “real” world next week after 3 yrs. @ home.

This is so true: “because one of the ways people survive homeschooling is to constantly remind themselves how horrible, horrible, horrible the alternative is.”  As somebody who went to public school, I’m often amused by what many homeschoolers seem to imagine goes on in school, both positively and negatively. No, my first-grade teacher did not teach us how to use a condom, and yes, we did work and learned things in school - in fact, at my highly home-schooled college, I knew only a handful of homeschoolers who had gotten anywhere near as good a highschool education.

Simcha, you are the best.

heavy pharmaceuticals, yes please! Awesome per usual, Simcha.

As a mom, who will NOT be home schooling, the subtle attacks of the home school community are very hurtful.  Sure, they do not realize they are attacks, but implying that to send my kid to a ‘gasp’ public school is to put their soul in danger, is a very weird thing to say to another parent.  I love my husband’s take on it so I repeat it often.  Sure, we might need to ‘shelter’ our kid’s from the horror that is public schools (or private for that matter) in order to save their souls.  BUT, what if these schools NEED our kids.  What if our kids get to be little evangelizers to their classmates/teachers etc…(as long as it is not to their detriment).  When I was growing up, my friends who were hurting or from hurting families ADORED my family, because it showed them something different. I am excited to send my kids out as little lights NOT hidden under bushel baskets (which, is not to say that all kids that are home schooled are hidden lights)...and I will watch them carefully and be involved to ensure they are not swept away by the evils of culture.  Thanks, once again, for writing an insightful article and being a voice of sanity!

“godless communist white board”

HAHAHA

I do think it is homeschoolers’ insecurities that lead them to attack the public schools.  But also, it is the endless questioning of their lifestyle by other people that produces some of that defensive tone.  Everyone just needs to put their dukes down, I guess, and realize that all of us mere mortals are just bumbling along, doing the best we can for our kids…homeschooling/public schooling/private schooling alike.

Thanks for the refreshing chuckle this morning.  You are spot on.

@Mary - toughen up!  ;)  Maybe we’re getting old, but other parents guilting us over our parenting decisions is a ship that’s sailed a while ago for my husband and me.  You and your husband don’t need to justify your parenting decisions to anybody.  That said, I’m not a homeschooling mom, nor (God willing) will I ever be, but I find your answer worse than no answer at all.  Perhaps your kids being lights in the darkness is a wonderful side effect of placing them in public schools, but expecting them to be little Christian soldiers marching off to war just seems to me a very heavy burden to be placing upon them.  Now I’m sure there are people here who will say that if that’s my outlook then I’m raising little Godless communists myself, to which I say, “So, what’s it to you?!”

@Eileen!  Trust me, the farthest thing from reality will be my children as little soldiers. That is not how the fantasy works.  The fantasy is more like REALLY down to earth kids that might not know how to recite the catechism, but do know how to love.  They will not be ‘sent’ to school for the purpose of evangelizing…they will be funny/creative/joy filled and THAT will be attractive. And love is attractive.  We aren’t afraid of the world, we try to operate in it as ‘lights’ of love.  Not soldiers marching off to war even kind of (did I say that?).  that would be a lot of pressure.  Asking my children to be pleasant and loving, I think they can handle that burden.
In other news, I am still learning to get over the guilting and the judging. I am certainly not there yet, so I appreciate the ‘toughen up’ comment! :)

This post reminds me of the one you did on attachment parenting. I know it’s supposed to be funny and to teach people to lighten up, but really, they just seem to come off as a little too sarcastic and snarky. If you don’t want to do attachment parent and you have decided to no longer homeschool doesn’t mean it is isn’t a valid choice. It feels like you’re working to justify your own choices by making fun of others. And yes, I realize that subsequent comments will tell me to lighten up.

Karyn, do you think everyone should attachment parent and homeschool?

It’s called humor. As a former homeschool mom, I find this hilarious. I’ve seen actually funny humor from the other side, too. If you can’t handle good natured humor, I don’t know why you’d read Simcha’s writing?

I wanted to comment, Karyn, that I think part of the issue is that you view these particular posts as attacking others of differing views. I think that Simcha intends them to be poking fun at her *own* self and her *own* past views.

I don’t feel this is good natured humor.  I don’t feel “good natured humor” is Simcha’s style in any area, not just this one.  I think Simcha’s humor is dark and biting and very very very funny if you’re in agreement with her thoughts, but hurtful if you’re not. 

I found the attachment parenting article to be hilarious.  Because I’m not much of an attachment parent. 
I don’t find this article funny at all.  Because I’m a homeschooling parent.

That’s the thing with Simcha.  She’s brilliant, she’s funny, and she’s sarcastic.  When you find yourself laughing at one of her articles at someone’s expense, know that someday that’s going to come back around to you. 

That’s what she does.  And that’s why so many of us love to read her.

What does it say about me that we have never homeschooled and send our kids to both Catholic and public school and I STILL feel guilty about not homeschooling. They are receiving a fine education at both places and I have no desire to homeschool, yet, there it is.

Thanks for this!  Last November we sent our two oldest (6, 9) to public school in my last week of a tough pregnancy.  I was angry with my husband for the (much-needed) decision, I was angry with myself for agreeing to it, I felt like a total failure.  And then the dust settled: the kids were happy, I got time with my 3yo and newborn, I caught up with the housework—then I felt guilty for being happy about it!

After a tormented summer trying to decide whether to bring them home or send them to school again, I came across a great post on Conversion Diary.  It was about St. Francis and decision making, and the lesson for me was this: who am I to think that God cannot work His wonders without me?  Do I have to be struggling at home with four kids for Him to bless my efforts (and my children)?  Does He not care for His children at public school just the same, shower them with graces, even call for vocations?  Of course He does. 

I had a huge sigh of relief.  So off they went, and even though I miss them and still bookmark ideas for learning the phases of the moon with Oreo cookies (you know, just in case)—everyone is learning, happy, thriving, blessed.

I think most people just need to get over themselves and just worry about doing what is best for their kids and their family, and also to realize that the latest fads are no guarantee of anything.  With a few exceptions, most of us who are parents of young children right now were bottle-fed, went to public or private school, went to daycare, ate gluten, and watched cartoons.  Many of us turned out OK in spite of those things.
-
I would not homeschool because I know I would make my children and myself miserable.  They go to Catholic school for free because my husband is a diocesan employee, but if he were not, then they would probably go to public school.  If you can homeschool successfully, do it; if not, don’t.  Parental involvement in your child’s education is the most important thing, and you can do that whether your child is in a conventional school or not.
-
As Simcha has said many times, there are few enough of us that are trying to be authentic Catholics in our liberal, post-modern world.  Let’s please stick together instead of fighting about homeschooling, whether or not is possible to use NFP with a contraceptive mindset, and PANTS!!

I think folk are often most blind to the humor that targets their own personal blindspots.And we all have those.Humor helps us to see through them.

I cannot see thru my tears of laughter.  Thankfully I’m mostly c ( because I know the b side of me is kinda krazy…..hahaha pass the Valium!)

I went to both public school and home school. I was in middle school for half a year before I begged - BEGGED - my dad to home school me. He did, and I never looked back. The education I received put me on a college level, making college a cake walk. And as a step-parent whose step-child attends public school, I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt that public school was better when I was in it and the public education has truly gone downhill. My college professors - no joke - were complaining, in class, about the poor education and lack of fundamentals taught in high school. They complained they had to re-teach the fundamentals just so they could get the students up to minimum college standards. While I don’t preach, I will not, in good conscience, send my children to public school. And I don’t care what sacrifices I have to make to see that they receive the best education possible. My experience coupled with my knowledge of the current school curriculum, leads me to choose home school as the best option.

Of course, I do use a Catholic program, and it’s the same Catholic program I used growing up. I trust it, I know the curriculum, and it is the best decision for my children and I.

Now, if a parent who decidedly and knowingly sends their kids to public school after carefully weighing all the options and sees that the kids will receive a better education in public school, then great! I do know there are good ones out there, and if you find one, and it suits your family’s life and needs, then so be it and God bless.

To those who think that the schools can be “evangelized” by their children: How well do you think your children are going to fare being under the influence of teachers, peers and strangers 6 hours a day, 5 days a week for 13 years? This can only work if you are heavily involved and keep open communication (without being suffocating). Personally, it’s naive to think your young children who are still forming their intellects and consciences will be able to successful evangelize anyone given the heavy influence of peers and the sheer length of time spent among those peers. It’s nearly impossible to get my 4-year-old to stop imitating her 1-year-old brother. Imagine how hard it’s going to be to offset the influence of kids your child’s own age given the length of time your child will be among those kids. But that’s just my observation and my take on the evangelizing response. It’s yet another reason (at least for me) to avoid public school. And don’t even get me started on the whole “socialization” nonsense.

Dear Simcha,

You have great talent! Your posts are funny and witty. I have to tell you though that I agree with what some of these commenters have said. What you write about people and how it’s framed, matters. Your writings create caricatures of Catholics and while those characteristics might be somewhat true, aren’t fair and pairing that with your talent, I think, is disseminating an atmosphere of disrespect and in the very least, division. 

Your writings come across as snide and snarky and while that’s entertaining, it’s not helpful nor does it really accomplish much. Who, among these homeschool groups is going to listen to what is said here? I don’t believe that it’s those that you criticize. Your readership, your low-lying fruit, are very likely to be women just like yourself. You’re just encouraging people who are already like you to be more like-minded. So, next question is - is that a bad thing? Maybe yes, maybe no.   

Many of your writings are a good pat on the back for those who are striving to be in the world and at the same time consecrate it. People need community and support from those who are in similar situations.

At the same time, your writings chirp about all these other people who have hang-ups and in your opinion, inhibit the process of evangelization and Catholic living. Problem is, that some of these people that your work makes a caricature out of - are not exactly the problem. Certainly, there is something to be said for snobbery on behalf of the sacrosanct but are your works shepherding people away from that exact mentality? I venture to say not. In my opinion, based on some of the things you’ve said, some of your writings might tempt a person to adopt a I’m-not-that-holy-therefore-I’m-cooler-than-that-totally-unkempt-socially-stupid-Catholic-over-there complete with a snarky and snide attitude.

One last point, these caricatures negate your ability to have as Aristotle would call it, “ethical appeal.” Those who see the fault of the caricature are going to be put off by what you write.

In the end, we all lose. Those who blindly agree with the caricature find themselves in social situation similar to the effect of gossup - a thoroughly developed clickish mentality that views others as lesser than themselves. Those who disagree with these forms find themselves isolated.

My heart goes out to you and I’ve been praying for you for some time. I felt your embarrassment over the Kinkade remarks and I can personally sympathise with the accounts of your personal experiences. With you I have laughed, winced at myself, and been inspired. I sometimes wonder though, if some of what you write is in part because of deeply rooted insecurities and perhaps frustrations with people who are difficult to love. I believe in you though. I’m rooting for you. 

I know you can do better.

Yours.

@N. - I’m sorry I don’t have time to respond more completely, and I really appreciate you rooting for me.  I just want to clarify:  I am not and never have been embarrassed by anything I said about Thomas Kinkade.

Love the M.O.R.A.L.S. lunch, do people really do that?
I’m a teacher at a Catholic K-8, every year we get a handful of children who were formerly homeschooled. Guess what? They are a lot like the kiddos who have been in parochial school since pre-K.
Some are well behaved, some are pious, some are average, some are wild…
I’ve noticed that children do a very nice job of chosing friends like them and recognizing when something they hear goes against what they are taught at home.
Be not afraid.

I agree with N.

I’m not exactly sure exactly WHAT this article is supposed to communicate.  Support for those who decide not to homeschool?  Deride those who are still homeschooling?  Try to make the divide between homeschoolers and traditional schoolers even wider?  Just be funny without communicating anything?

Maybe because I’ve found that no one can make me feel guilty about that which I really believe is true, all the “relieving guilt” articles never resonate with me.

N. ,
I’m stuck on the sarcasm theme here, but I’m guessing your post was a satire of previous comments?

I’m a homeschooling parent, and I found it hilarious. Don’t change a thing.

@Maria:  yes, the post was directed at parents who have decided to make the move from home schooling to the classroom, and who feel anxious about their decision—hence the title of the post. 

.

I’m always a little baffled by readers who protest that they didn’t like an article because it didn’t apply to them.  What do you want, a refund?  I write three articles a week, minimum—usually more.  Not everything I say will apply to everyone who has access to the internet.

Love it!!!  Just going through it now with my 10 year old.  So glad I got to read this today!

I don’t think this said *anything* about people choosing to homeschool, and it certainly didn’t deride them. There are lots of great reasons to homeschool, and this post didn’t touch on any of them. Notice that last line? Homeschooling can be great, but school *can* be great, too. Both can also be bad for families and children.

I’m glad the powers-that-be have never begged me to become a “Catholic Blogger” (as I’m sure they would have if I, you know, wrote…) You need an awfully thick skin to endure the commentators who can’t believe you aren’t all things to all people.  Gah. You can’t support EVERY cause in the world!  You have to pick and choose.  We all have to pick and choose who we are best suited to support.  On the other hand, I think we all could stand to practice a little patience when it isn’t our turn.  Everyone needs support, but Simcha is not the only person ever offering it!  So ex-homeschoolers like myself get this article (which is needed!  I don’t know that anyone outside of this extremely limited experience could possible understand how much we beat ourselves up about it.) Homeschoolers who need their own specific support can get it, too, just not right in this space at this precise moment.  Mark Shea posts little things in support of homeschooling all the time.  I don’t find it offensive even though my kids go to public school.  Those moments just aren’t *my* turn for support.  I think most of us are mothers here, and I bet most of us tell our kids ad nauseum to wait their turn.  Let’s take our own advice. (:

I didn’t know we could get a refund! Could I have mine in sleeeeep?  ;)

@N. - You asked “Who, among these homeschool groups is going to listen to what is said here?”  The answer is someone who’s really not a good fit for homeschooling at this point in her life and just needs permission to send her kids to a mainstream school.  This article didn’t apply to me at all and I certainly chuckled.  There’ve been other articles - like the one on attachment parenting - which also didn’t apply to me, but I didn’t really find them humorous and in fact have found them a bit over the line.  But again, there are almost certainly people out there who need permission not to attachment parent but are feeling very pressured to do so. 
.
It’s been many years since I’ve felt Mommy guilt, but I remember it well in my struggles to breastfeed my two oldest kids.  If somebody, anybody, whom I respected would’ve given me permission to give my babies bottles, I’d have listened.  But the permission wasn’t there - there was lots of pressure, all of it disguised as support.  By the time the younger kids rolled around, I was older and more experienced and more able to realize that my best mothering is going to look very different from someone else’s.  And I’m a better parent for it.  And my kids are healthier and happier because of it.
.
If homeschooling works for you, then you are not this article’s target audience.  But mentioning how horrid public schools are is borderline cruel to someone teetering on the edge because of homeschooling.  And those folks are the target audience of this article - all those faceless someones whose experience, children, and school districts you cannot know.

“(a) the teacher has secretly arranged for two drug dealers, eleven porn stars, and PZ Myers to come in and make your child write “I no longer respect my parents” five hundred times on the godless communist white board which, as part of their secular humanist blurring of the line between good and evil, they use instead of a black board.”

I’m pretty sure this is the best thing you’ve ever written.  Done. 

OMGoodness!  rotfl.

@Carmen
Let me say two things. 
First- my expectation is that my children will ‘evangelize’ through living and loving. I do not see them as the savior of public schools.  I believe we are called to be light to the world, and I believe that can start very young.  I believe they can start this in the public schools they will be attending.  I am also aware that is our job to protect our children’s innocence, and to that end, as I noted, if I saw it was detriment to my children to be around ‘those other children/teachers and GASP strangers’ (lol) I will surely pull them out of the public school environment. 
And to your first post- well, it just makes me sad.  And probably Jesus as well. I’m just sayin’

And to Ms. Simcha you REALLY rock.  Keep it up.  But, how do you read these comments and stay sane?  YIKES! 

That is all.

@lpatter that was the quote I chose to share on my fb wall with the repost. Because it is sheer brilliance! :)

@ Mary:
I know what you mean and agree with you.
In 9th grade, St. Patty’s Day, one of the kids in the public school where I attended, Sherry by name, asked the teacher why the Irish used the shamrock.  The teacher wouldn’t/couldn’t answer.  I stuck my two cents’ worth in and told her that it represented the Blessed Trinity. Sherry asked me, “What’s that?”
In shock, I (who went to 7 years of parochial schooling) asked, “You don’t know what the Blessed Trinity is?  Come here, Sherry.  I’ll tell you.”
Suddenly eight kids were clustered around me.  Yes, to be a light!

@francine WHEW- I was beginning to feel crazy as a couple people were posting about how I was basically going to feed my child to the wolves if I made them militant soldiers for evangelization.  Which is completely not what I meant.  My whole family was public school’d and our friends loved being at our house.  So many of them had broken families and loved being around both my mom and my dad.  Now, 20 years later, they still talk about being a part of the joy/chaos that was our household.  I could say more, but will refrain!

Maybe, but I still think most who send their kids back to school do so because they can’t hack homeschooling.  Sorry folks, but this has been my experience.  It’s just plain hard to homeschool well, and if you are paying taxes anyway, let the system take over.  Unfortunately for those of us who stick it out, these kids are the ones who give us successful homeschoolers a bad name as the state schools “fix everything”.  Nobody ever said Christianity is easy.

@naysayer:  That’s so weird, because you don’t sound sorry.  You sound like you’re implying that Christianity = homeschooling. Maybe you’d like to rephrase your remark so that it’s less crappy and more true?

if you want to justify your decision not to homeschool, just walk out your front door. there are plenty of people who will pat you on your back as you do so. and who’ll laugh at your humor that clearly reveals some biting truths not necessarily about homeschoolers, but about your feelings towards them.

Who knew I would keep posting comments, but @simcha just made me laugh out loud again. ‘less crappy and more true’ might just be something I use all.the.time. in my non social networking world.
Now, I really must get back to work.

Ok, Christianity = homeschooling.

How can an institution that forbids even the mention of God and fosters multitudes of philosophies and ideals that are contrary to the Gospel, accomplish any Good?  I don’t mean good things, but Goodness?  That institution is inherently evil.  As we homeschoolers are often heard to exclaim “even on the worst day, if all you do is recite the Lord’s prayer with your children, you have done them more Good and less harm than the state schools”.

Okay, these comments are getting real stupid real fast.  Here’s the deal, folks:  the choices (a) and (b) were based entirely upon myself.  The choices (c) describe the much healthier place I’m at now.  I know a LOT of homeschoolers.  I know homeschoolers who can’t laugh at themselves.  They’re raising dreadful, dreadful children. 

.

Being a good parent means making the best decision for your particular children based on their particular needs, taking into account your family’s particular situation.  When all families look alike, then there will be a one-size-fits all solution for education.

.

Naysayer, you’ve been listening to too much Dr. Laura or something.  You have heard the worst, and assume that it’s that way everywhere, all the time.  Some schools are the way you describe, but some are not.  Do you really think that someone who once went to the trouble of homeschooling would suddenly turn their kids lose into an evil place without researching it thoroughly?  My kids pray before they eat their meals at school.  We pray at home.  We talk about how to deal with people who are hostile toward prayer.  There were good things about homechooling, and there are good things about not homeschooling.  You can be happy with your choice, and confident that it’s the right choice for your family, without accusing other people of a sin you just invented.  Get a grip, man.

wow people….anyone else see that you are now bashing homeschoolers?  This is a 2 way street, you want respect and freedom in your decisions?  Well, start by giving it to others too….including homeschoolers, who are not all anti-school and who do not all feel that this is NOT a moral decision, but a decision about what is best for each individual’s family…We do not all homeschool out of fear of failure, nor do we all begrudge it, anymore than we all think people who send their kids to school are failure….wow.  Is the only way to make a point these days is to belittle someone else in the process?

@melissa:  who is bashing homeschoolers?

@naysayer:  wait a damn minute.  You’re the guy who sent his sons to a school run by the Legionaires of Christ.  And now you’re criticizing other people for their educational choices.

@Naysayer,  you might be right that some “just can’t hack” homeschooling.  But so what? Homeschooling isn’t the norm, and the Church specifically directs us to rely on the greater community for the education of our children. And isn’t it the weak who are doubly blessed anyway?  The tradition of the Church has never been to exult the strong and the mighty, but the humble, the lowly, the weak, and those who just can’t hack it.  That’s what all the saints say anyway.

I was wondering the same thing so I went back and looked, I don’t see homeschoolers bashed anywhere in the comments…I do, however, see those that choose to send their kids to public or private school directly/indirectly bashed again and again. 

“Being a good parent means making the best decision for your particular children based on their particular needs, taking into account your family’s particular situation”

Gotta love those situation ethics.  My point is that state schools are inherently evil.  Yeah, your kids can and likely will do fine there, just as good people did fine (in a moral sense) in atheistic regimes and concentration camps.  And yes, there are plenty of homeschooled kids who need their arses tanned, and I know a few personally.  I just don’t want to support the system when I have a choice.  When they come and put me in jail, well, we’ll see what happens then.

“@naysayer:  wait a damn minute.  You’re the guy who sent his sons to a school run by the Legionaires of Christ.  And now you’re criticizing other people for their educational choices.”

Haha, you got me there.

“My point is that state schools are inherently evil.”

.

Okay.  Now that I know this train is headed straight to Crazytown, I’m getting off now.  Have fun, folks!

But on the subject of the LC, well, I was there with them, and in my limited defense, I skidaddled when Maciel was outed.  So there.

State schools are inherently evil which is why the half of my family that went to them stopped practicing their faith, became drug dealers and joined gangs while the four of us who were homeschooled are living saints.  Oh wait, that’s not true.

This is a great, Seinfeld re-cap of what actually happens…  I love this.  I get it, as many of my homeschool friends end up in the school system.  It’s par for the course now that our local educational choices are improving.  In fact, I am one of the only diehard homeschoolers left in my community.  Some say go talk to her if you want to “stay” homeschooling.  Those of ours still at home will (likely) stay home through high school, attending some of the great online Catholic classes now available and community college (dual enrollment bonus)!!  However, I have two wonderful older kids who spent time in the Diocesan high school, charter great hearts school, and in the inner city public school.  In each case, I made the extreme move every day of praying to the Sacred Heart of Jesus to place my children within in His Sacred Heart.  I asked Him to pour His Precious Blood around them as I said goodbye to them.  And we mico-managed them the best we could without being overbearing…:)

It has since occured to me that our homeschooled kids need these prayers to be placed within His Sacred Heart every day as much as the others did.  Did my public school child survive?  Better than the Diocesan one.  Did the Diocesan high school child survive?  Yes, but no better or worse than they would’ve at home.  Every day, we must pray for God’s will, and He will protect our children, because they are His first.  And He will help sanctify them through His chosen path!

Simcha,

I needed this so badly today, on the second day of Kindergarten. With a 5yo, a 3yo, a 10mo, a Great Dane puppy and twins on the way, we made the very, very heavy decision not to homeschool this year. L was halfway through K when we found out we were expecting, but it just felt like a burden was lifted when we decided to send her to one of those “horrid kid prisons.” I was homeschooled and always thought that was our path, but God seems to have a different plan for us right now. The worst reactions I’ve received are from those who tout themselves as the most flexible and willing to bend the rules - the homeschoolers. After weeks of beating myself up for the decision, Lucy has jumped off the bus two days in a row looking exactly like the kid I’ve said goodbye to in the mornings, her Miraculous Medal shining as she bounces home with stories about her day. She is a beacon to her class and to her school, and we’re not hiding her under the bushel basket this year. As for next year, we’ll see. We’d like to homeschool, but we’re taking it a day at a time. His blessings come a day at a time, so we’re trying to just let them come. I needed this today, and it came at just the right time.
Thank you!
Laura

I see homeschoolers being depicted as the “bashers”, critical, and unforgiving of those who send their kids to school—in the comments.  I think we are all trying to do the best we can by our kiddos and for each of us, that may be a different choice.  These comments are pretty harsh and create a VERY stereotypical depiction of homeschoolers—-which is excactly what causes the “guilty” feelings that some people have if they switch gears and put their kids in school.  Did you feel that way towards others when you were homechooling?  Where is this projection coming from that homeschoolers are so critical and looking down their brow at those who send thier kids to school?  By this, I’m speaking to the comments more so than the article itself.  When did homeschooling vs. public school vs. private school become a competition?  These comments certainly indicate that there is a one size fits all approach—-and at the very least, that homeschoolers certainly think that if you love your kids then you homeschool them.  It’s unfair to paint all homeschoolers in this light….we do not all feel that way, nor does this need to be a “them against us” topic.

It is clear from the comments here that this author used the National Catholic Register to pick a fight…and I have to wonder why National Catholic Register would choose to be a part of it?  You could - instead - maybe write a constructive article about the pros and cons both options.  But, hey, it’s human nature to stand divided.  I am a homeschooler who put her kids back in school…and as a homeschooler, and on behalf of my homeschooling friends, I am offended by this article.

Funny! My only boy started half day kindergarten and he loves it- hopefully he will join the others in (charter school) homeschool next year.

One thing to remember: homeschoolers are in the MINORITY- we might seem to be everywhere because we are different, but even in the Catholic world- we are the minority. In my little bubble, I might think I am like everyone else, but I’m not. Most Catholics send their children to public schools- and some are good schools! ;)

I think some people didn’t read the article. I survived being homeschooled 7-12, and it worked well for me. My mother tutored and offered classes to homeschooled students, and now, at the age of 30, I have also spent my share of time teaching homeschoolers as well as Catholic school kids. The point is that where there are parents who take into consideration and really pay attention to their children’s needs while modeling a solid spiritual life in the home are going to end up, by and large, with solid Catholic kids. I have seen homeschoolers who have religiously intense families who have no idea how their kids learn, refuse to get them tested for learning disabilities and then wonder why they have a couple of do-over years. I’ve seen kids who are clearly not cut out for the busywork and social crappiness of Cath school and would love to have more time learning with their parents. The problem in both cases is that the parents have delegated responsibility to a philosophy, either “homeschooling is the only way” or “Catholic school is the only way.” It’s up to the mother and father to discern where each one of their children fits, what the family’s needs are, and how they can best achieve both education and sanctity. And I sure haven’t seen any homeschooling bashing here (before I get accused of it, I should point out that I’m homeschooling my little girl this year, albeit loosely). Surely it’s reasonable to notice where some homeschoolers or schools of thought about homeschooling go wrong, just as it’s reasonable to do the same with families who send their kids out to school. We’ve all seen it. Also, Simcha is funny. Everyone involved with homeschooling has had these thoughts, both kids and parents. They are cartoonish images of what really goes on in many, if not most, people’s heads.

Simcha,
If you were in my neighborhood, I’d love to invite you over for coffee!  I picked up a print of this 1950’s lady (sweater set and skirt with high heels kicked off) lounging on a couch while her children went off to school in the background - getting on a bus.  She has her little cup of coffee in her hand… I love it.  It makes me smile every time I look at it, because I don’t know of anyone EVER who did/does that - home schooling mom, mom of kids in public/private school.  Your posts are fun to read - keep up the great work;) but leave the Legionaries out of it.  One or two bad priests don’t keep you from the Catholic Church, right?  Or from writing for the NCR, which was an apostolate of the Legion…

To Suzanne and Melissa and anyone else who has posted that they are offended:
I agree that many homeschoolers exude a one size fits all attitude.  Emotionally, however, as a homeschooler, it’s tough to see your friends ride the rollercoaster regarding in and and out of the school system, when you find it “easy” to commit to homeschooling.  I belive that those who are homeschooling for the right reasons know that each path is determined by God’s will in each of our lives.  If every Catholic abandoned all other options and said no to God by not sending their kids into a particular school if He is indeed calling them there… well, that would a travesty.  We must all listen for God to direct us.  This can be so hard when many decisions are made under stress or additional children, pregnancy, etc.  I think it is best that we all try to pray for each other and understand each others misfailings.  Speaking as a homeschooling mom, good kids come out of public school, too.  I know, I’ve got one!

melissa - Can you specifically point to a comment in which “homeschoolers (are) being depicted as the “bashers”, critical, and unforgiving of those who send their kids to school”?  Because I must have missed it along the way.

And Naysayer - Certainly there are many things amiss with some state schools in our country.  But really - evil?  I know of some school districts where you are more apt to get authentic Catholic teachers in the public school system then in the local Catholic School!  And for the non-Catholic student, they would be denied this opportunity if they were home schooled!! :)  Homeschooling is a great option if it works for your family but it might not be the best option for every family.  As far as I know, the choice to not homeschool has not been added as a mortal sin.  Making up sins really isn’t a convincing way to frame an argument.

Bernadette - Homeschoolers are human as all other people.  Sometimes women judge way too much…this is not only true of home educating women.  Simcha Fisher threw some punches and calls it humor.  I’m sorry that she is bitter about her experience with homeschooling families.  But to go so far as to call the children “dreadful?”  It is clear that she needs to have a chat with herself and reassure herself that she does not need permission or approval from any other human being to make her decision.  Our parish youth minister has gone well out of his way to make his disapproval of my family’s homeschooling decision apparent (and we DID put our children in public high school) - he gossips like a 13-year-old.  So what…he’s not the father of my children.  I’m nice to him, but we live our life in spite of him.  I cannot for the life of me understand why National Catholic Register put their stamp of approval on Simcha Fishers rant.

Suzanne, Simcha herself is a veteran of homeschooling.  She was not mocking homeschoolers per se, only people like Naysayer who tell moms that every public school is inherently evil.  Which is harmful nonsense.  Read the article again and scroll through the comments - you will see some folks making Simcha’s parody look extremely realistic!

Ah, sacred cows.  In my experience Homeschoolers range from A-Z in approach and attitude.  Some of the ones I know, got together and made their own school.  Some I love, others are shall we say, “OVERBEARING”?  Some of their children thrived, clearly some did NOT (as in:“no thank you Catholic Church”).  Frankly, I could write a sitcom about everything I’ve seen, but it might make Naysayer go ballistic.  But I’ll throw a bone for him to gnash his teeth on.  Last year my son’s kindergarten teacher was a lesbian.  She was a wonderful educator who taught with warmth and cared deeply about the children.  Confusing eh?  She never mentioned her home life to the kids once. I did have to shush my kids from saying “that’s so gay” to each other, and explain to them why this was unkind.  One of my highlights last year was when my second grader chose to write about Jesus when he was asked to describe his best friend.  His teacher was really touched but also wanted to know why he also enjoys drawing weapons if he loves Jesus.  We had a nice little chat about that, and the fact that he has five brothers.  I also have to be blunt and admit I hardly read to my sweet 6th born.  I never did “alphabet” sounds either.  Math? Hahahahaha. (that’s what siblings are for.)  We just got his star tests back—100% scores in 8 of 10 categories and high 90s for the other two.  I’m delighted his public school is doing such a wonderful job!  Oh, and one more little thing, he loves to go to mass, loves to say his prayers, (he never forgets to pray for his godmother with cancer every night) and dearly wants to be a priest.  Please take a millisecond to pray for this intention! All of my children (25-3), including the first that was homeschooled for a little while, the five that went to parochial, the three that only went to public—go to mass, and consider their faith extremely important.  My daughter’s boyfriend is entering the RCIA program.  Without a doubt, my kids that have been in public school the longest have fared the best, and have been the happiest and most well adjusted.  I think it’s because I finally realized that you can’t make anyone be, or feel, or think anything.  You need to entrust them to God.

I found your article quite interesting!  I myself am just coming out of being a “bi-schooler”  One of our daughters spent the last 2 years in a pretty good charter school.  We did not have a bad experience with it, our daughter, because of how we raised her, had chosen for herself a set of really wonderful girls for friends.  Our story is a GOD story.  My daughter and I clearly needed a break from eachother, it was just a growing time for both of us.  Her to respect me more, me to be more patient with her.  We both feel really blessed to have had that break!  She is back home for high school. (Her 2 older sisters are in college, both homeshooled since 1st grade and her younger brother is at home also).  Our decision to homeschool came way before we even needed to think about school.  We are firm believers that homeschooling is a calling/vocation.  If God calls you to it and has put it on your husband’s heart than it will be a blessing for your marriage and your children.  Not everyone is called, I don’t believe in making anyone feel bad about the choices they make in the education of their children. If you are doing what God calls you to, than you never need to apologize to anyone who thinks differently from you!

ohmigoodness. STOP before you wake the children! We are the church militant and we have to stop tear each other to pieces. Have you read Srewtape Letters lately?
There’s only one who’s enjoying this !@#$%…

Merdith - So you think it’s okay to parody “some” homeschoolers, in a professional(?) piece for the National Catholic Register…just the ones we don’t really like?

Would it also be okay to parody “some” people in every other class of life?  As long as we’re not talking about all (fill-in-the-blank-with-the-prejudice-of-the-moment) people

Nope, not finding it funny either. I still pray that God gives each family the strength to follow His will in whatever their educational circumstances may be.

I comment very infrequently so not really sure what I’m jumping into.  I’ve homeschooled, part-time homeschooled, enrolled some of my kids in “Options” programs, used homeschool co-op classes, enrolled them in CCD some years and other not; all for 19 years. 

Here’s the bottom line:  Every single homeschooling parent, public school parent, Catholic School parent who is praying to the Holy Spirit faithfully is being guided by the sacramental graces God is giving to THAT family ALONE through the Marriage Sacrament.  Period.

Oh my gosh these commenters are making me eat my hair!
People.  It’s called humor. It’s about looking at your reality and making outrageous jabs at ‘the worst that could happen’. 
Think of it as comic relief.
Do you know the concept?  I think that Shakespeare guy employed it, when in a drama, there’s all this killing and deception and heavy ugliness happening… and the audience needs a bit of a break—comic relief saves the hour!  Everyone laughs and moves on to the meat of the story.
.
Good heavens people, if it’s not your kind of humor, move on. Simcha is not aiming personal attacks at any one or any group…. she’s just pointing out the absurd in things that some people twist themselves into knots over.
.
Most people with a sense of humor can read this, and even if they think certain elements of it are biting or a little too true or a little too stereotypical, they SHRUG IT OFF.
.
If you can’t do that, it may be time line up behind the Lion, the Scarecrow and the Tin Man to visit the wizard and ask for a sense of humor.
Sheesh.

Awesome!  I think you have just the right amount of funny, and I do homeschool, I’m just not an evangelical homeschooler.  We all have to do what’s best for our own families.  This is working for us right now.  It may not later(although I’ll keep the microscope and the laminator, thank you!)  This post makes a great attitude check—“Am I treating school families like THAT?!  I think you should do a “Parenting Examination of Conscience” unless you have and I’ve missed it…

Interestingly enough, after 9 years of the usual way folks have their kids educated, in a brick and mortar school, we have decided to home school for high school. We found that after months of discernment it was a better option for our daughter, for this year and maybe beyond.

After reading the comments it seems that the judgements fly both ways for those who go to public school and those who homeschool. When we or our daughter tell anyone that we are homeschooling this year, almost immediately, the person receiving that information face drops and they say, “Oh, well that’s nice” or “oh, I’m sorry” or “how will she be socialized?” The judgement has been made! It goes both ways folks!

It is not an indictment of anyone else’s choice of education for their child, it’s the best thing for ours, at this time. I think that if people were more open minded they would see that there are many options nowadays. Do parents make mistakes, you bet! But I think the key before responding is giving the other parent the benefit of the doubt that they probably know what’s best for their own kids.

It is so so sad how quickly catholic comments become uncharitable.  Sad.  If you read the post carefully, Simcha is making fun of a very very particular group of moms.  Those of us who, after much prayer and thought, have stopped homeschooling.  She is making fun of me.  And it’s hilariously on point people!!!!  Because yes.  Yes I’ve had all of those thoughts and many others….my decision was not a personal vendetta against homeschooling/schoolers.  I still think is a beautiful valid way to educate. No one here started out saying ANYTHING negative about homeschoolers, , homeschooling, homeschool, schooling at home, etc.  She did say that SOMEONE we won’t name names MIGHT say you were sending all your children to hell in a hand basket.  And unfortunately she was not wrong there was she?

I suppose it is fair to give Simcha Fisher the benefit of the doubt…maybe she hasn’t experienced these issues from both sides. I do hope and pray that education moves forward in a way that embraces the best interests of each individual child - whether that be home education or brick & mortar school.

@naysayer
My daughter’s public school teacher is a Mass-going, NFP-practicing* Catholic who when they were doing projects on important historical figures of the 20th century assigned her group Mother Teresa. Not evil
*I only know the NFP part because after my daughter was assigned to her class we realized we had a mutual friend and somehow NFP came up. So me knowing this is not as weird as it sounds.

Hooray, Simcha, for again reminding us to give one another (and ourselves) freedom to do what prayerfully decide is best for our kids.  We weaken our Christian witness when we pick at each other, or are paralyzed by unfounded guilt. Plus, you always make me smile. :)

I see a little of the attitude in ex-homeschoolers that I see in ex-Catholics…always trying to justify to themselves and others that they did the right thing.

I see the same attitude in people when I tell them about my macrobiotic all-liquid vegan gluten free diet. Always trying to justify their consumption of animal flesh and solid food. I just know it is because they secretly feel guilty and know that I’m right. I mean, what other possible explanation could there be for someone wanting to explain their choices to someone who is critical?

I’m surprised that so many people here interpreted this article as an indictment of a segment of homeschoolers.  I looked at the choices in the article as the crazy inner dialogue Simcha has with herself this time of year.

Ranae, right on!  You hit the nail on the head.  One major factor in my descision to stop homeschooling my children involved humorless, self-righteous people very similar to some of the commentors on this post.  My 7 children are happy in school and have met some lovely friends and so have I!  I refuse to live in fear of what or who will ruin my children. Neither Homeschooling, Public School, nor private school will guarantee that your child will turn out well adjusted and never leave the Catholic Faith.  Sh** happens.  Your child will suffer the pain and hurt this life has to offer.  You cant stop it.  All we can do is love our family, love others, and pray for the strength to persevere.  GET on with life.  Live, love, laugh.  Above all, laugh.

*commenter

Naysayer, the quote you mentioned .... If all you do is say the Lord’s prayer…. reminds me of the homeschooling families who loved to use that quote.  Their children were taught nothing.  They were all several grades behild where they should have been and were put at a severe disadvantage due to the educational neglect put upon them by their parents.  It’s a lie.  That little quote was used to make people who didn’t teach thier children properly feel better.

Sincha, I understand your point and it’s a great article. But I can see the point of those who felt it leaned toward derision of homeschooling families. Humor does not always have to be at someone’s expense. Does it occur to you that there are homeschooling families who struggle with THEIR choice? That they struggle to steel themselves against just this sort of pigeonholing which society deals out so well? One thing has always bothered me about this and several other Catholic blogs: there are loyal readers who are intolerant if anyone disagrees with their idol. I don’t know how many times I have seen people ridiculed in this column for “not having a sense of humor.” Some comments sound like they are almost showing the door to a reader who pipes up with a different perspective, as if to say, “if you don’t like something Simcha says, your comments are not welcome here and you can go elsewhere; in fact, why do you even read her? Get out!” If the readers who disagree with Simcha are supposed to lighten up and “take it,” surely Simcha herself can “take it” when they respond, without the fan base having to silence polite dissenters.

great article!  I have felt all of these things before!  Now I have some kids in home school and others in school!

” My point is that state schools are inherently evil.  Yeah, your kids can and likely will do fine there, just as good people did fine (in a moral sense) in atheistic regimes and concentration camps.”

Ok, you officially can’t be real.

Blogs are a fun, fulfilling forum for avid, gifted writers, and they are also fraught with danger. What is that? It is the temptation of taking oneself too seriously.  I have been noticing it with some established, well-known Catholic bloggers.  Daily their Comment sections include replies of admiring readers, and who of us is immune to praise?  A sort of camp following can occur; one might even wonder if some followers gain needed satisfaction from getting an occasional public pat on the head from a well-known blogger. As for the comments to this posting, unfortunately the tone became increasingly uncharitable. Sadly, the blogger did not help the tone by employing phrases like, “Maybe you’d like to rephrase your remark so that it’s less crappy and more true?” or, “Get a grip, man,” and, “Wait a damn minute. You’re the guy who sent his sons to a school run by the Legionaires of Christ.  And now you’re criticizing other people for their educational choices.” We are all human, and we can certainly imagine it may be darn difficult not to get frosted by reader remarks, but it is incumbent on Catholic bloggers to refrain from using ad hominem remarks; rather they must find the strength to use their talents to set and maintain the tone for Catholic charity.  Bloggers and responders can all benefit from the exquisite, wise reminders in 1 Cor 13: “Love is patient, love is kind. Love bears all things, endures all things ...”

I used to be of the “I could never homeschool” camp.  I knew there was no way I had the patience for it.  It wasn’t the lack of morals that drove us out of the public school system (we live in a fairly religious community), it was the lack of education.  My son would get papers home with mistakes that weren’t corrected or even marked wrong.  I felt since he already had a grasp of the material on the standardized tests and was fairly well behaved he was more or less ignored.  More and more teachers and schools are being evaluated based on their standardized test scores; as a result actual learning by the students seems to be declining.  I understand that not everyone is in a situation where they can homeschool, but I would suggest to the parents to keep an eye on the work being done in the public or private school.  Again, I’m not blaming the teachers, but I think a lot of the time the administrations are setting them up to fail.

@Leila - Simcha is a talented writer.  I’m a fan.  However, she’s not my idol and I’ve disagreed with her many times.  Whether I agree or disagree - Sometimes I post.  Sometimes I don’t. 

Again, another hilarious post with a ton of truth.  Although the article may not apply to everyone it does apply to me.  I am sending one of my formerly homeschooled children to public school this year and I’ve already gotten worried emails from homeschoolers in my group AS IF I DIDN’T HAVE A CLUE as to what I was getting into (never mind that my kids started in public school ).  Every kid is different, every situation is different and you try to do the best for your kids.  We really don’t need the unasked for “advice” from well-meaning but misguided parents.

I loved this article. I am a homeschooling mom to 7 kids who has at times used the public school, Catholic schools and Christian schools. At different times, for different kids, these have all been good options for our family.

Simcha is brilliant, because she cuts so close to the bone. I can see my weaker self in the set of A answers, my emotional, mothering self in the set of B answers and the self I aspire to be and pretend to be in the set of C answers. 

“I see a little of the attitude in ex-homeschoolers that I see in ex-Catholics…always trying to justify to themselves and others that they did the right thing.”

Yes, Suzanne, this obnoxious attitude absolutely deserves to be parodied.  The Church does not teach that all families must homeschool to be good Catholics.  The choice between public, private, homeschool, or even private tutor is purely prudential.

Isn’t life funny sometimes?  Just when you start to rest on your laurels thinking you’ve figured it all out, God allows a curve ball to smack you upside down the head.  I was literally reading the comments in *this* thread last night, when my eighth grader came and threw himself in agony across my bed.  He’s the kind of kid who is really, really happy, disturbingly happy, 98% of the time, but that 2%? (shudder) It’s like the dark vortex when it happens.  He was moaning about how he was losing his coolness, that the “pretty chicks” didn’t want to talk to him “Pretty *girls*” I corrected him distractedly, continuing to read. A homeschooler would say, “See! Look at how peer pressure deforms them!”  At first I ignored him, offering him nice little Mommy platitudes over my shoulder because I was more interested in the catholic cage-fighting that was entertaining me.  I figured he was suffering “League of Legends” withdrawal symptoms, because summer is officially over.  Then I realized it was real, there were huge tears and a mounting crisis of his clothing, hair (I sheared it on Sunday), lack of a new hat, but most of all, that the “groups at school” were reforming, and he was clearly no longer at the top of the food chain.  His Sophmore in H.S. brother walked in saying, “Of course this is happening!  Look at you, you dress like an idiot, you wore those shorts in the sixth grade!  You need to wear pants and half cabs”  It didn’t help that he had been demoted from the “gifted” program to the “college prep” one, and didn’t know the people in his classes.  He had a problem last year with chatting in class, telling his Spanish teacher that her class was lame, not completing in-class assignments, correcting one of his teachers a little too forcefully that Jesus was more important than Muhommed…He pulled straight B’s, but they kicked him out of the program anyways.  My inner mother tiger jumped to his defense going into full-panic-hot-house-flower-mode.  I hugged him saying, “We’ll go shopping on Friday!  It’s okay to hang out with your nerdy friend Justin and your cousin!  I can homeschool you!  I can put you in Catholic school!” Later that evening when I spoke with his older sister on the phone, who is settling into her new college, I told her about the problem, and she was merciless.  She chuckled appreciatively, saying, “it’s about time the little monkey grew up.”  We both agreed that he was academically irresponsible and had functioned without an adequate social filter for far too long.  It was amusing as a seventh grader, but clearly not for an eighth, and he is starting to feel the pain. 
It remains to be seen how this will go. I’m ready to put my money where my mouth is and put him in a small Catholic school, but I doubt that fixes the problem.  (I’ll probably have to go in and beg them to let him back in the gifted program, but I’m not even sure if that’s the right solution.)  I doubt he opts for homeschool, which would probably be a nightmare because he’s as stubborn as a mule.
I’m more of the opinion that he needs to stick it out and that God makes diamonds out of coal, when the coal is under pressure. 
(and which must be why I’m pregnant again at 46 when I was settling in with the idea that my kids in their twenties would be supplying me with grandbabies)...
It’s hard to know what is best for us, or our families sometimes. It’s humbling. That’s why throwing myself and those that I love, upon His Divine Mercy is a daily event.

Full disclosure - we homeschool. Will we ever send our children to government schools or a private school? Who knows? Did I find this article amusing - not really. I think Simcha relied far too heavily on gross stereotypes to engender a cheap laugh. Not unlike what the writers of Saturday Night Live do.  I found the comments interesting, and a bit disheartening, particularly the ones from the author, who (in my opinion) was rude - especially with this remark “I know homeschoolers who can’t laugh at themselves.  They’re raising dreadful, dreadful children.” That is really unfair. What about those parents who are always sarcastic and caustic. Perhaps those same homeschoolers you find so humorless think your children are “dreadful, dreadful children.”  Your column was recommended to me as a “must read” since we live in the same state, homeschool and are Catholic. I gave it a go for a couple of months, but I think I’ve had enough.

Congratulations Anna Lisa!

*Eileen, :) Thanks.  I’m still a in a state of amazement, and definitely a beggar for prayers…

I’m jealous!  I’ve got the baby fever myself.  My youngest is starting full day Kindergarten next week.  I’ll pray for you and your precious babe.  Please pray for me and my family too - we’re thinking of embarking on another foster to adopt situation.

I was homeschooled most of my life, but also went to public and private schools for a while, and a homeschool co-op type thing. I found this article to be funny. You know, “haha”? She’s making fun of herself. If anyone is being derisive or judgmental, or trying to pick a fight, it’s the commenters.

@Anonymous, I’m also smiling because God often has a whole different path for us to go down than the one we start mapping out.  for the first time ever I was picturing myself in a totally new chapter of life. I had just given every single last baby item away to two new mothers at church. I sent my third child to college on Monday.  I had just convinced my husband to get rid of our King sized bed and adopt our daughter’s full sized one to create more space…but I can’t think of anything more lovely than nurturing an eternal soul.  I’m staying away from fertility websites (the ones that convinced me I wouldn’t have another baby) because the statistics are daunting.  Thank you, thank you for prayers, and yes, will pray for you and yours as well.

@Anna Lisa - oops!  That was me!  I accidentally put anonymous in the name field.

;), Eileen.  I do that sometimes when I’ve been a bit snarky at trollish behavior and then forget to switch it back!! :)

Meredith - I’ve met some of the homeschooler’s you describe (Catholic and otherwise…even a few pagans) and so I know what you mean.  I don’t belong to a Catholic homeschool group precisely because of the behavior of some of those who have been described here as being too “legalistic.”  Why?  Because they are not nice…I don’t want my kids believing that their judgmental attitude or their behavior represents our faith.  Instead of hanging out in a homeschool group, we hang out at the parish…with the youth minister who thinks that God sent him to rescue my family from homeschooling.  But, at least he’s nice (most of the time).  I decided several years ago that our homeschool group is our parish, and that is true even if you don’t homeschool. 

However, when it comes to this article, does the National Catholic Register need to promote the parody? For what purpose? I can see that Simcha’s audience gets her humor, and so it is appropriately written for her audience.  Is it appropriate for the entire audience of the NCR?  My parents are subscribers (85 and 87 years old) and they would not have found this funny no matter who was being parodied.  If Simcha wrote this for those who know her, love her, and get her, then I see no harm.  But I don’t know her and was not familiar with her satire…and so it me like a critical rant against homeschoolers in general…and her response to the reader comments suggests that that is in fact what it was. 

And I wonder…what is the general consensus regarding home education at the NCR? Do their views concur with those at my diocese (or those in the parody)? If so, then this was an attack of sorts on the way of life that we have chosen as a family.  I’m far more upset with the NCR than I am with Simcha Fisher. 

There are many, many homeschoolers who do not fit this description who were none-the-less the target of this article…it does an injustice to every homeschooler, even those whose behavior might otherwise meet with the approval of Simcha Fisher and the NCR.

@Suzanne. Are you a real person or are you really Troll ii?

to answer ‘Suzanne’- the parishes I and my extended family have had experience with are ‘sort of’ against homeschooling (homeschool speakers can’t use facilities, first communion children need to take 2 years of weekly catechism with public school CCD, homeschool groups can’t meet on parish grounds). This might be because homeschoolers compete with the parish school (?)(my sister with 6+ children can’t afford the school anyway)
but ‘Suzanne’ this post was about parents second-guessing their personal decisions…and I don’t suppose most 85-year olds read the blog section of the paper…

@Suzanne, you need to read the article again, more carefully.It is in no way a parody of homeschoolers. It’s a parody, based on the authors own experience, of moms leaving homeschooling after much thought and prayer and still freaking out about it. It is intended to offer humor and comfort. There is nothing unkind about it at all. As for your comment that you 80 year old parents wouldn’t care for it—you’re joking, right? Even if for some deranged, sad reason one wanted to write a blog that appealed to every reader at all times, it’s impossible. There is lots of stuff on NCRegister that doesn’t appeal to me much. I guess I should go let them know, huh? Maybe demand a refund?

I’m with Kahili - starting to wonder if Suzanne is a troll.

Kahili - flesh and blood, human being here, with a completely real opinion.

Priest’s Wife(?) - My parish (and my diocese) doesn’t like homeschooling either…my point was that I understand the frustration that some might have with the personalities parodied in the article…except the article didn’t really separate the “good” homeschoolers from the “paranoid” ones.  And, my parents read articles about home education because their grandchildren are home educated.

Again, I’m not sure that the NCR should have put this out there for their wider audience…because it’s really uncharitable in it’s description of homeschoolers.  The comments here - from both sides - speak for themselves.  Yes, yes, I know…I don’t know how to laugh at myself, or the people I care about, and I have “dreadful” children.  Nice.

This is the first time I’ve ever been called a troll…interesting.

Suzanne- if you want, you can google my screen name and find my blog.

I loved this article and the one a few years ago about quitting homeschooling.  I homeschooled my kids for three years until I put them in public school last year.  Trying to educate 3 kids with a toddler and infant was just plain, crazy town in my house everyday.  I seriously felt like I was losing my mind.  I could really relate to the part about homeschooling being a part of our families identity.  ALL of my friends were from the homeschool community so it was kind of like going through a divorce…. okay not really but you get my point. Many homeschool parents will lead you to believe that public schools are the most awful place that you could send your kids.  My family has not found that to be true and my kids really love it!  I thought this article was hilarious and I appreciate Simcha keeping it real…God Bless you! :)

@Suzanne, I just didn’t know the town council from Footloose really existed.

@Suzanne—I think we’re wondering if you’re a troll because your criticisms bear no relation to the post you seem to think you are criticizing. You say it is uncharitable in its description of homeschoolers, but homeschoolers aren’t actually described in it. I repeat my recommendation that you read it again more carefully, because you haven’t understood it at all.

anna lisa!!!!!  Congrats!!!!

I guess my reaction to this is 1) it’s good you’re standing up for people that are getting rudely judged and marginalized - totally get that, have seen it, this is a very good thing you’re doing but 2) I am afraid that this post will still discourage struggling homeschooling moms unduly (not really by any fault of yours or by any intent of the post, Simcha - - these people are overly sensitive), who always, in my experience, feel inadequate, and almost always feel this way because they judge themselves unjustly.

I was pulled in and out of schools throughout my youth, and in the judgment I’ve formed from hard-earned experience I think homeschooling was the best, most positive learning environment, hands-down - quite in spite of all the failings my mother wrung (and still wrings) her hands over. I fully intend to stick homeschooling, myself - for plenty of straightup positive reasons, mind you, not just obsessive, paranoid negative ones. I mean, I’ve been there, after all. Was public school all that bad? No. Was Catholic school all that bad? No. However, I’ve seen a lot of homeschooling moms over the years, and these poor ladies often get so caught up in their failings (scrupulosity runneth amok) they forget that failings are a normal part of life. Did I suffer a bit from failings in discipline/structure/expertise during homeschooling? Sure. Did my husband suffer from failings in discipline/structure/expertise during public schooling? You betcha (and his sufferings were, imo, worse - my details were off/lacking, but his foundation had been set all wrong, so he had to rebuild his education from the bottom up). Failures are part of life - DO try to relax, homeschooling moms, and enjoy the many positive aspects of homeschooling, *without* obsessing over how much, how permanently, how horribly you’re messing up your childrens’ lives. Because you’re really, really not. Take it from me - I would know. ;)

Samantha - the piece “parodies” stereotypical fears of homeschoolers.  Several commenter’s here have suggested that certain homeschoolers, essentially, “deserve” to be described in such a way.  My more recent comments were in response to other comments. 

Specifically Meredith’s comment above:”“I see a little of the attitude in ex-homeschoolers that I see in ex-Catholics…always trying to justify to themselves and others that they did the right thing.” Yes, Suzanne, this obnoxious attitude absolutely deserves to be parodied.”

Also, the authors comments clearly suggest that she is being critical of homeschoolers.  The entire comment thread is either a criticism or a defense of homeschoolers.  The point that Simcha might have been trying to make got lost in the parody.

Do I think Simcha Fisher was using humor to try to help some homeschoolers ease through the transition of putting their kids back in shool?  Yes, and I think she should have shared it with her fan base.  I the the NCR should have considered that this piece would not go over well with everyone.

@anna lisa
Go girl!  Congrats on the baby.  There are people in the world who would love to be in your position;) so enjoy every moment of that pregnancy and know we are praying for you and yours!!!

To those who say NCR shouldn’t publish such a piece because some readers might disagree or take offense - take a moment to imagine a publication that only published things nobody could disagree with or take offense at.  Would you really want to read such a boring publication?

Definitely wouldn’t read a publication like that. Plus anyone could take offense to any of the articles & blogs in NCR, not just this one.

I didn’t say that “nobody could disagree.” Let’s disagree about substantive things.  The disagreement in this article is petty and mean.  This is a Catholic publication which published a piece that is ridiculing other people.  The comments here reflect the feelings of some homeschoolers about “other” homeschoolers…the feeling are very strong and there is hurt on both sides.  Publishing something like this is like having a gossip session in a national publication.  As Catholics, it seems to me that we could rise above that, especially when several people have had the opportunity to preview the piece.  Again, the comments speak for themselves - and there is plenty of criticism to go around.  I am sorry for Simcha Fisher if she really wanted to offer something helpful to others…but even her anger with the parodied characters (and their dreadful children) wasn’t too far below the surface.

@Suzanne, will you post one more time? I’m not sure I got you point the first five times you said it.

Kahili - Some of the other commenters keep talking to me…it would be impolite not to respond.  I’m happy to answer questions and explain for you, and for the others.  :)

You have to be kidding. To take offense to this post is to allow whatever anxieties you have to take over your mind and override all ability to process what you read rationally. This post was about the decision not to homeschool and a humorous take on the worries a former homeschooling parent has about sending their kids to school, nothing more. Surely homeschooling parents aren’t so insecure that they see reassurances to those who make different decisions as an indictment of their own?

@Jen, and Corita, Thank you!!!  Isn’t being Catholic exciting? Isn’t life poetic?  We conceived our last little one on the vigil of the Immaculate conception, and buried him last August. This little one was conceived in August, on the feast of the Assumption.  God willing, he or she will be born in Mary’s month of next year, and will live a good, long life. Life is too short to be a an obsessive worrywart or freak (what I tell myself, if I start to go there—this applies generally to *everything* eh?).  In light of my maternal age, I’m thankful for this new little one, day by day. So here I am, standing on a spiritual corner, holding my cardboard sign that reads: “Please pray for us”...so grateful for your spiritual alms.
@Sorry Simcha for for being a beggar and crashing the combox fight.

@Anna Lisa - AAAAAAAAH!  TMI! TMI!  I don’t want to know when your kids were conceived.  LOL.

@Eileen, lol.  I thought of lots of excuses for myself but they were all TMI. Haha I guess my husband has corrupted me after a few decades.  It’s virtually impossible to embarrass him.  Here’s my alibi that I used to be a nice, super-modest young lady: I could blush on command if someone said “sex”. I used to nurse in restaurants on toilets. My sisters and I used to snicker at each other when we were big and pregnant because we were embarrassed we could see each others’ uterus.  Hahaha.  We actually have a code for how inhibited we can be on my side of the family.  We say: “Your (my mother’s maiden name) is showing!”  Oops shhhhhhhhhhhhh!  I don’t want to offend anybody’s good morals here.  I said uterus! (I didn’t used to have one when I was more proper ;)

Anna Lisa, I am not kidding when I say I read Simcha for your comments! I wish you were my mom! All this motherhood couldn’t have happened to a more intriguing lady, congratulations!

After reading this article and seeing all those nasty comments by fellow Catholics, I have decided to stop subscribing to NC Register.  What a shame.  I think Simcha is not even a Christian when she talks like this.  Read the Bible, Simcha ... and grow some humility.  God bless to all the homeschooling, hard working parents who truly care about their children and the future of this nation!

@Jenny, what a sweetheart thing to say.  I love Simcha’s writing because she is so honest.  I “tune in” because she’s unafraid to tell the unvarnished truth, and laugh.  We all need to laugh more.  It’s hard to be a human much less a good, kind mother, when the bar is set by the sanctimonious, who perpetuate an impossible ideal and a dreadful distortion of what true Catholic motherhood must be. I suffered a lot from their mentality when I was a young mother.  I could never have loved and enjoyed such a big, noisy, chaotic, brood if I hadn’t broken free from this.  So that’s why I comment…because a few kind hearted souls, were authentic enough to laugh at me and my ice castle ideals.  They taught me how to get over my mother-ego, love life more, and allow myself and my family to be more authentically human.  I thank God for them.  Where would I be if I hadn’t gotten the plaster-statue smack down?  For starters, I’d have a much smaller family…God Bless you :)

Do the defensive commentators just realize how crazy they are coming across? My goodness, has everyone lost the ability to laugh at themselves? The article was meant to make you laugh, and actually, Simcha was laughing at herself, well, her former self. So get over yourselves and laugh. I know I’m laughing at myself. My sides hurt.
Ok, so here’s my bit, I never understood why anyone would want to home school their children for the reason of protecting them from “evil” society? If you home school because you believe you can provide a better academic education as a parent than say the local Catholic or public school, then that makes sense. 
But to “shelter” your children…? In Australia, Homeschooling is very rare. People who do so for this reason of “sheltering”, do an injustice to their children in the long-run, because they never learn to associate with people not like themselves and uphold their faith, with resilience, at the same time. 
Parents are the first educators, and it is through them children receive the Faith, learn to turn to God in their lives and uphold this throughout their life. Not the school. 
Yes, The Catechism is important, but coming from a very strict Opus Dei school upbringing myself who learnt The Catechism every week for 10 years, and whose school ethos is to support parents (the first and foremost educators of their children), I can tell you that unless the “penny drops” through a practical living out of ones faith, then The Catechism is just words from a rule book.
Children need to learn the skills to defend themselves at university/workplace, and they are up for a rude shock if you protect them from the reality of the world. Be secure enough in your parenting.
I’ve used this analogy many times-it was no accident that God intended the Holy Family to live amongst the pagan Egyptians in the early years of Jesus childhood. They could have stayed amongst other Jews in Jerusalem, but instead associated, befriended, worked and lived amongst the pagans. The bible says Christians are the “light of the world”, “the salt of the earth”, and our children are exactly this in their schools. 
They don’t have to evangelize or preach- thats ridiculous to put that pressure on your children- all they have to do is just BE a Christian, Act like a Christian, Live as a Christian. And by their actions and interactions they will be witnesses to the Faith. It is our job as parents to support them to be Christian in their ordinary, everyday life. It’s as simple as that.
Simcha said it beautifully- her children pray before mealtimes at their school and she helps them deal with any hostility by other students if it arises. I’m sure she doesn’t arm them with a bible every morning and tell them “preach”.
God Bless Simcha, I appreciate and understand your witty humor, and your good-old God-given common sense.

Wow, you’d think this article was about feeding dogs kibble vs the bones and raw food diet! Simmer down, ladies! I enjoy Simcha’s humor, never more than when she is poking fun at her own and our frailties and foibles. I have some kids in public school and some at home. Autism and some other hard knocks have taught me to be completely submissive to God’s will in my life and that there won’t be a straight line from A to Z. If I couldn’t laugh at myself and some of the crazy and difficult things that come up, I’d go nuts. We should not judge each other, but I believe we all could benefit from judging ourselves. Make sure you are loving others as Jesus loves them and for His sake, lighten up.

Simcha - Write another piece.  See if it is possible to use your talent and your humor to get these people to stop all the crappy criticism of eachother which suggests that it’s “them” that is the problem.  It’s clear that we (homeschoolers or not) get on eachother’s nerves sometimes (human nature).  If it was not your intent to poke a proverbial stick at the homeschooler’s who irritated you…then please use your gift to “try” to get both sides here to lighten up on one another.  It’s easy to suggest that a conflict is one-sided…but as parents we all know that is never true.  Let’s blame both sides, and then let’s try(?) to get along with “constructive” disagreement…and yes, with at least a bit of humor.  I went to Catholic schools (12 years) and I had very serious social challenges…took me a lifetime to figure it out…and then God gave me a beautiful little homeschooled boy with autism.  My son is not dreadful, and neither was I…we were just “different.”  Judgemental people?  They come out of every personality type, segment and class of the population…seriously.  Parody both sides. Celebrate both options.

I was kicked out by the townfolks and had to live in a cave up on the hill.  Three months later my wife joined me, showin great courage and devotion, to my mind.  She was nine year old then. 

My two boys, Romulus and Remus, were suckled by a she-wolf, and now they’re larning the law of the pack.  I spend most my days huntin fungus, so I don’t get much of a chance to teach them.  I just hope they figure out how to multiply before it gets too late. 

Their ma spends most her time weaving odes to the midnight sun.  She always were a sensitive soul.  Man, I love that girl!

“Still bright light in the cold dark night,
When the winter comes to chill
Don’t give up without a fight.”

There is a whole lot of pointing out the splinter in the other’s eye while we have a LOG lodged in ours.  Homeschool, public school, private school: keep your eyes on your own work.  To quote Mother Angelica “We all drag our own carcass to market”. That includes YOU, too.

Actually, I think there’s a lot of people trying to pick splinters out of their eyes, but they keep being jostled by other people who are running around shrieking, “HOW DARE YOU SAY I HAVE A LOG IN MY EYE?” 

.

Except for Matt B.  Matt B is fully engaged in a lively debate about the price of kiwis on Saturn.

@naysayer As a public school teacher, I am appalled and saddened at your characterization of all public schools as inherently evil. Of course there are problems, just like in any group made up of people. But I know too many passionate educators who chose this profession as a way to do good in the world, and pray daily for their students to not be incredibly offended by your remarks.

I don’t find this article at all offensive.  I think Simcha said it right when she articulated “for their particular family.”  Our internal dialogue does nothing to help us in relation to other families as we are constantly thinking, “well, is this the right thing for my children?” Though my child goes to Catholic School (3rd grade and the other is 2 1/2yo)  I cringe whenever they are away from us, no matter where they are or how old they are - most parents do.  These thoughts are within all of us whether we say it or not, and I don’t believe inherent evils are what are being conveyed here at all.  We all have struggles, and we all have that internal dialogue, but we smile and do the best for out kids.  Well written, Simcha!

They’re down.  Now’s the time to buy.

Rebecca: How true.  Some of the finest people I’ve met are teaching in a public school.  However, the key thing about a PS is that they have fully and completely stripped themselves of any objective orientation towards the God of Christianity.  The good teachers smuggle it in on the sly.

Why do you send your kid to school at all?  Reading and math are not that important.  You can get a video game to teach those things just as effectively.

Without a conscious purpose of inculcating Christian values (achieved with whatever variation of success) schools are counterproductive, and counterintuitive.  It’s like your throwing children into a mosh pit.

I would also like to enter the lists on homeschooling:

My wife has repeatedly brought up her desire to homeschool our two children, and it may some day come to this.  However, up until now I have consistently naysaid it.

I cannot imagine my dear spouse in a situation where she is teaching these two challenging 6 year-olds for what will amount to all day (refereeing, really).  Already she supplements their formal education with countless hours of in-home instruction.  It’s for her sake that I’m allocating the parochial school tuition from our meager take-home pay.

This is a valid consideration, and until they start teaching Marx along with Jesus Christ at the parochial school (and Father seems averse to take this step), that’s the direction we will go.  “If Mommy’s not happy - nobody is happy.”

SF - I think the operative “eye” metaphor is not biblical at all, but classical.  Lots of the gods of classical antiquity have blinded themselves or been blinded.  Oedipus is a great example of this: pursued by guilt he plucks out his own eyes.  The seer Tiraeseus was said to remove his eyes for the sake of “inner vision.”  Finally, there’s the Cyclops, who when asked by his fellow one-eyes who had blinded him, cried out “Nobody has.  It was nobody.”

These examples show the truly pagan philosophical background of our educational system.  But it is not a purely classical system, but one which has been filtered through the cloudy lense of 1950’s pseudo-science, and socialist parochialism.

The pure light of classical antiquity has been bottled and sold for snake oil.

@Simcha:  Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you for a much needed laugh during a very stressful week, spent freaking out about our new principal at our Catholic School…who is an “advocate” (her words) for Standards Based Grading/Report Cards and who thinks Standardized tests are the only way to really, truly know if a child is learning…after all, “how do we know that parents aren’t doing the homework for them”.  I have been on a roller coaster all week, but am slowly 1. getting some humility, and 2. realizing that the same good, loving teachers are still there, and can stand up for themselves, and 3. whether I homeschool or not, my children will be fine.

@naysayer:.....“but I still think most who send their kids back to school do so because they can’t hack homeschooling.  Sorry folks, but this has been my experience.  It’s just plain hard to homeschool well, and if you are paying taxes anyway, let the system take over.  Unfortunately for those of us who stick it out, these kids are the ones who give us successful homeschoolers a bad name as the state schools “fix everything”.  Nobody ever said Christianity is easy.”
1.  Not everyone who homeschools is Christian (it’s not a requirement)
2.  While teaching is hard work, and I’m super thrilled that you can “hack things” - not every family can afford a stay-at-home parent.
3.  Not all public school systems are great….but (as in Philadelphia), some Catholic school systems are being hacked to pieces.
4.  This week one of my children will begin yet another Catholic school.
5. My other child is now enrolled in CCD, and super excited that her public school offers free breakfast.
After the hacking apart of our Catholic Schools here in the birth place of liberty, another friend had to parse her children out to 3 separate schools.
So let’s not forget that sometimes homeschooling is simply not affordable, and the leftover alternatives suck.  Not only is every family faced with choice, but many are forced to make choices that they know aren’t the greatest, or even remotely their first choice.  And so we go along, hacking through life….kindof makes me want to buy an ax.  Oh - I also forgot to mention that you should be careful that your arm doesn’t pop out of it’s socket - patting one’s own back can be a difficult task.  Keep up your hard work - and it’s not your “successfully homeschooled” children who are giving you a bad name - you can take all of the credit for that yourself.

Let’s make a list of every unjust comment that was made on this page and then see who’s the most uncharitable.  Was it the homeschooler’s with those dreadful children?  Or was it the public/Catholic schooler’s who just can’t hack it?  I’m sure that “those” people are much worse than “we” are…and they deserve all of that criticism!  They are much more wrong that we are…so it’s okay to lower ourselves to their level in a national Catholic publication…just this once.  They deserve it.

@Suzanne:  I have an even better idea.  Let’s all acknowledge that this post is a week old, and move on with our lives.

Sorry, that was a rather snotty way of phrasing it.  But really, if a comment box on a blog post a week ago is still eating at you (and I mean this for anyone, myself included), then it’s probably time to unplug for a while, or at least reevaluate whether we’re seeing things clearly, or projecting our own anxiety onto other people.  Believe me, this is advice I have to give myself regularly.  It’s easy to feel like the whole world is against us, but there are steps we can take to make that feeling go away!

@ Simcha - Very true…but you did spark something here.  A constructive discussion could be born of it, and light could be brought to the positive side of the choices families make.  I’ve Catholic schooled, public schooled, and homeschooled and have enjoyed all 3 experiences.  It’s funny…when we chose Catholic schools, my public school friends thought that we believed we were better than them…we suddenly were seen as snobs. And then, when we left Catholic schools for homeschooling (mainly because we couldn’t afford tuition - too many kids), my parish priest and the entire office staff stopped speaking to me.  It made for a very difficult and emotional year - I didn’t even know this conflict (the one described in your article) existed until I innocently made the decision to try homeschooling. Through many tears I worked through the conflict with my parish and as a result they opened the use of their facilities to the Catholic homeschoolers, but it was not easy. And then, when we made the decision to put the kids in public high school - the parish was ecstatic!  My children were saved…and thank God.  We all know, of course, that the “real world” only exists in public schools (and sometimes Catholic too - it depends on the degree of sex and drug use).  Clearly, some women (and some men) could really use some enlightenment.  But it is easier to just trash eachother and move on after a week or so…  We’ll move on, but will we learn?

I appreciate your last post Simcha - thank you, and I agree!

The only thing the Catholic homeschooling commentariat hate more than public school (which they assume you are just using because you are too stupid or too poor to homeschool) is Catholic school.

I’m talking Catholic schools run by parishes under the auspices of the diocese, etc. That’s where you associate with the wrong kinds of Catholics and pay for the privilege while the nuns are taking your daughter to Planned Parenthood while you’re not looking.

Ann - That is true of “some” Catholic homeschooler’s…but not true of all.  Why pay them any mind?  Again, I receive a lot of negative, prejudicial comments from people regardless of our educational decisions.  Who cares?  I’m free (thank goodness) to make decisions that I think best for my children…and I ignore those people.  To highlight them to this extent does an injust to the rest.  It’s sort of similar to giving attention to the Westboro baptist protesters…every time the media gives them the light of day, they benefit from it.  If they were ignored, it would suck the life out of their message/goals and they would be effectively invisible.  Celebrate what’s right and good in all options available in education today.  By the way - I just learned that the diocese of Miami started a Catholic virtual school program.  Soon enough, home education will be a flexible option incorporated within formal school systems.  We should have a party!

@Ann…...You almost make it sound like a sin to be too poor to homeschool.  As I stated above, homeschooling is not an option for some people because a “one-family income” will not pay the bills.  That doesn’t mean that some families wouldn’t like that option, but it remains out of reach.  Some cities have incredible public schools, and some leave much to be desired.  You don’t seem stupid, but your comment demonstrates great ignorance.  It’s a good thing you’re able to stay away from the “wrong kind of Catholics”.  I suppose I’m lucky that my son got into a Catholic school - as there was no room for my daughter, she will go to public school…...thank goodness the nuns won’t be running her off to Planned Parenthood.

Hilarious, heartfelt, and so true.  Thank you, Simcha!

I’ve got a bone to pick with 1 (c): say a prayer, heave a sigh, drive away, and remember that you can always change your mind if it really doesn’t work out.

A lot of states, mine included (PA), will not let you pull a child out of school for homeschooling if they have been previously homeschooled.  So your son wants to go to high school and decides it doesn’t work?  Too bad!  PA law is written in such a way that if you send your child to school after homeschooling, public or private, you are essentially admitting that you cannot be trusted to educate your child.  The only way to pull your child is to move out of state.

Im a from australia, im catholic and im a homeschooler, i have no real problem with this article, i think all parents who love their kids aganize over the desions we make, big and small! I’m blessed with 8 kids so im learning from my mistakes! hoping the last couple turn out well, but who really knows, im human!! My only real comment was to sasha about the legion, Some of the most wonderful and faithful priest i have ever meet are in that order, and while u might think my parenting, my homeschooling choices are good or bad, please dont mock the order of priests my beautiful son is decerning his vocation with! One day he might offer the sacraments to you! God willing!

This spoke directly to me. I’ve been homeschooling, or I had been homeschooling for 5 years and this year we switched to a charter. It’s been rough and hard and we are only 3 weeks in. *sigh* Thanks for the pep talk. I feel better already.

I would like to point out that, since taxpayers support public schools and pewsitters support Catholic schools, homeschoolers are net-supporting those parents who put their children in school, and should thus be respected in the same way food-stamp recipients should respect those who pay taxes for their welfare but derive no personal benefit themselves.  If you need school, you need school, that’s fine there should be no shame if you really do need it.  But in these days of public debt and ballooning public pensions, not to mention systemic atheistic indoctrination (yes some schools top the 12 porn stars) - the more of us who can homeschool, the better.  And certainly please don’t deride those who have made the heroic commitment to homeschool.

This is hilarious, Simcha!  I am in the interesting position of being a homeschool graduate myself who, so far, is sending her oldest to a (wonderful, Catholic) school.  But even as wonderful is the school is, I still have those, “Wait, I’m supposed to be her teacher!” moments.  This is a good reality check for me. :)

I am there and I agree (except for the distasteful octopus comment.) I have one in public school who behaves better (yes, really) than he did when homeschooled. My other homeschooled kids are doing fine for the most part. I definitely agree that there is no perfect answer. We all try to love and pray for our kids and, in the end, have to trust them to God.

I was part time home schooled.

I would like to fulltime home school as a father, unless I find a really decent school.

When my teachers in Austria thought me lazy because I was slow, when my comrades laughed at me as girly boy because I was imitating Samson in not cutting my hair one day I told ma I’d want to suicide unless she stopped sending me to school.

Same thing over again when comrades harrassed me because my first love did not give immediately way to the “choice” of its object for my rival, who had seduced her. Maybe she thought it spooky seeing my glances when I hardly dared speak to her either.

So I was homeschooled twice. And those were the happiest times. If school is bad for morals it is not because teachers force morally brought up children and youngsters (big difference) to write the opposite on the blackboard. It is because comrades brought up with modern unmorals are given too much freedom to tease them, so that the morals become a heavy burden, which naturally they are not.