Freedom—free-falling, or free-flying? The potential is there for either one. I didn’t know that the decisions to homeschool was ultimately the decision to be free—and all that freedom implies.

I hear questions like “what is there for homeschoolers, or what do they do for gym?” Questions that don’t have anything to do with freedom. When I hear people say “my child’s teacher let me come in the class. .. “ I think, ‘what?’—Isn’t that your child? You’re not free to be in the place you send them all day? How abdicating, how hands- off!

I didn’t know I was stepping off into freedom. I knew I was stepping into the unknown, and I expected have a guide—the person I blamed for our doing homeschooling in the first place—for many years. Of course, I wouldn’t have done it (homeschooling) if it weren’t for God, and it was really cowardly of me to try and blame my decision on someone else.

And blaming that person was unfair to her, and totally missed the point. I’m sorry for that. Because this was about freedom! There is no guide. I didn’t get that.

I think I sensed that freedom can be isolating. You are free to make decisions that nobody else has ever made, right? So you have no guide, and a darkly lit path, if any. You may be forging your own path.

And sometimes I wonder at what cost freedom? For example, our children are free to decide whether or not they want to play on a team together. They are free to skip practice, or attend. They are free to wear whatever shoe color they want on the team, and free to choose their numbers.

They don’t look as cohesive as other teams they play, especially school teams. When they lose games, the coaches like to blame the schools and their daily practices. But we could choose daily practices, too. We have the freedom to do that. Instead, we choose to practice maybe 3 days a week, if we can make it. Maybe our attitude of complete freedom is not as conducive to a team situation as an approach that would emphasize community? Maybe?

As homeschooling parents, we are free to decide what our children should learn. Then we are responsible for what they learn. That is the case, whether we homeschool or not. That idea just didn’t hit my radar before I jumped off into the homeschool abyss.

That freedom can be a heady thing. They say after slavery was abolished, some folks just wandered aimlessly, looking for their people, not sure where to go or what to do. That’s easy to do without a plan.

I would urge anyone considering homeschooling to survey the landscape carefully and decide where you want to end up. Then you have the freedom to carve your path to that destination. It is an awesome responsibility, and an amazing journey.

Not to be entered into lightly. What do you think?