alternative learning days

It was sunny this morning, and we have all that we need here at home including blankets and coffee and colored pencils and chromebooks, and water to run laundry and freshly made eggs and rolls with cinnamon butter for breakfast. We were lacking in nothing to have a wonderfully cozy day at home - except, as it turned out, in our attitudes. And that can be the hardest thing to change, sometimes.

It is the hardest thing to change - that's why we pursue so many alternatives first. We try consumption, we try self-pity, we try entertainment, we try diversion - and what it really comes down to is we really just need to be looking at things differently.

So when 8-9 am yielded significant challenge in sibling relationships, tone of voice, and collaboration on game rules, we did not give up. We did not move on to something else or try something easier. Sometimes those are good strategies -- sometimes its the right thing to do to put it aside and pick it back up later. But this was not the time for that. This was a time for all of us to pray our way through with more patience than we had within ourselves and more acknowledgement of personal wrong than we typically like to surrender to. "Repentance", I had told Titus the day before, "is the way back into the family." We don't demand our way in, or push the other person far enough out that there's room for us. We set aside ourselves to make room for others, and then there is room for all of us.

For me as a mom, a significant part of this is setting aside myself to make room for time with the Lord. I know the fact that I finally found a few moments to sit down with coffee and my Bible, with my ear attuned to His message, is what will truly turn our day around. Sometimes we think we need something bigger -- a break, a different set of circumstances entirely, warmer weather -- but the reality is that we just need daily bread.

Alternative learning days are welcomed here with open arms. As I glanced at Elijah's choice board this morning it brought sweet memories of the days in winters past when we learned from home for many hours - through COVID, through last January when the cold days came in an unending parade. Almost always, I have seen alternative learning days as a merciful gesture from the hand of God, giving us an opportunity to catch our breath, slow down a little bit, stay cozy, and learn differently than we would have if we were going about our normal Tuesdays. A change in pace is always a great chance to take a good hard look at our attitudes and habits, and to realize where we've grown lukewarm or lazy. Without an alternative learning day, we might not have realized how much our relationships had deteriorated, and how much repair and attention they need. And so today, I'm thankful for a chance to look at things from a different angle, literally learning alternative-but-equally-important things - particularly patience.