I May Have an Answer to my Homeschool Woes

I know, as a long-time homeschooler of about 18 years and possibly one who could be considered one of the early pioneers, I should be an enthusiastic proponent of the joys of homeschooling. However, I would rather stick pins in my eyes than teach small children to read or learn their math facts. The delight of hearing a child lisp their first read words are now less from the joy over seeing them accomplish this first important step, as it is from thinking the end is now in sight! The first couple of times I did this, it was interesting and gratifying to do, but I am not a natural teacher of elementary school children. Give me a topic that I love and an interested audience teen and older, and I can perform like a trained seal. But little kids? I love the darlings, but it makes my eyes glaze rapidly when they are repeating the five times table for the three zillioneth time.

Now don't get me wrong, I enjoy my kids and don't mind having them around all day. (Though I admit to fantasizing about having the house stay clean for several hours while they are away at school rather than the constant uproar that surrounds us.) I don't have them in the public school system because it is a den of iniquity designed to turn out drones and not innovative thinkers and entrepreneurs. I doubt I will produce any Einsteins in my home, but on the other hand, they are already giving evidence of knowing how to work responsibly and how to earn money at an early age. I have given them every encouragement to be self-motivated learners, and at least one of them, is showing signs of following this path now. He grumbles about some of the work assigned to him, but give him a topic he is really interested in learning, like how to buy a reliable used car at a good price, he can run circles around me with his research. Teaching them how to research and learn for themselves, in my opinion, is better than stuffing their heads with algebraic facts they will never use.

Still, it nags at me that there are some things that may not be getting covered that should be.

The other day I received a flyer in the mail from a Christian Home- eSchool for K - 12 here in our fair province. It utilizes the Alpha Omega curriculum and only costs $200 per child for the year. This program is designed for as much or as little parental involvement as is wanted by the parent, but the kids must turn in their work daily to a teacher via the internet. The teacher is available to teach and tutor as needed and provides grades as well. Even better is the fact that at the end of Grade 12 they will have a BC Dogwood highschool certificate.

I have use Alpha Omega stuff in the past for isolated subjects and the curriculum is good. I love the idea of having someone else do all the correcting and instructing for me! One of my kids biggest complaints is the fact that I don't multi-task well like other moms. I tend to center in on something that is occupying my attention to the exclusion of bombs going off under me. (When I am on the computer, they now resort to bellowing "MOM!!!" at the top of their voices in the microphone in order to get my attention. This tends to send me skyward like a rocketing pheasant to their great amusment.) This has meant a backlog of work to correct and oversee because this has to be wedged in between cooking, cleaning, laundry and everything else. I have often said that if I ever made enough money, the first thing I would do would be to hire a tutor. Well somehow or other, I am going to find the chunk of change I need to get this online tutoring. I'll still be teaching the littles the basics, but those who are in grade four and up, are candidates for this program.

I could kiss whoever dreamed this up.

I Sing the Glories of...

.... Organic, grass-fed bison. I now have a freezer full of one half of a heifer. This morning I stir-fried my first bison steak for hubbies lunch, and managed to sneak a few pieces for myself. It was wonderful! Tender, tasty, and very similar to beef. The price was great too -- only $1.79 a pound to have it cut, wrapped, and frozen. That is considerably better than what I was paying at the grocery store for beef, even with the Mad Cow-depressed prices.

Grass fed beef and bison has a better omega 3/6 fat ratio than cattle that has been raised on grain. There are higher levels of conjugated linoleic acid in it, which is a wonderful fat that actually helps the human who eats it to burn fat more efficiently. I am looking forward to eating my way to slimness. ;o)

Goodbye Svend?

The man who changed the face and, um, the other end of politics (as my husband quipped) has been caught with his pants down in a jewelry theft.

Was it the stress of a nearly fatal fall that caused the irrational act? Or was it a guilty conscience that comes from violating the laws of God so flagrantly for so long, and for encouraging others to do so?

Who knows?

I sincerely pity his end if God doesn't grant repentance.

The Delights of Little People

Circumstances are such in my daughter's life at the moment that she is needing my assistance in caring for my grand-daughter for a few days. It has been a blast! Kee Kee Boo is 10 months older than Dainty Doodle and the two of them are partners in crime and fun. It was hilarious watching them learn the new skill of rolling down the grassy hill outside my office window, and then watching them pretend to be frogs hopping about the yard.

One of the blessings of large families is seeing the kids love and care for one another and the just plain fun they have when they get going.

On Brotherly Love

"But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another." I Thessalonians 4:9

You know you are truly blessed when you are recipient of such love. This is the kind of love that spits on both hands and then climbs down into the trenches to labor alongside you in digging that ditch. This is the kind of love that takes covenant vows to love one another as Christ has loved us seriously. Hereby we know that we are the sons and daughters of God because we demonstrate that love to each other, and also before the world.

I would take a bullet for those who love me and mine this way. They know who they are, but most importantly, God knows them.

Sorrow Endureth for a Night...

...but joy cometh in the morning.

"...For even if I made you sorry with my letter, I do not regret it; though I did regret it. For I perceive that the same epistle made you sorry, though only for a while. Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. " II Corinthians 7:8-10

Things are looking up. :o)

How Can You Mend a Broken Heart

I can think of younger days when living for my life
Was everything a man could want to do.
I could never see tomorrow, but I was never told about the sorrow.

And how can you mend a broken heart?
How can you stop the rain from falling down?
How can you stop the sun from shining?
What makes the world go round?
How can you mend a this broken man?
How can a loser ever win?
Please help me mend my broken heart and let me live again.

I can still feel the breeze that rustles through the trees
And misty memories of days gone by
We could never see tomorrow, noone said a word about the sorrow.

And how can you mend a broken heart?
How can you stop the rain from falling down?
How can you stop the sun from shining?
What makes the world go round?
How can you mend this broken man?
How can a loser ever win?
Please help me mend my broken heart and let me live again.

[Change the gender, and you have a song for a prodigal's mother.]

Last night I woke up around 1:30 am and could not sleep. The combination of too much bittersweet chocolate before bed (pms time) and a sore heart put sleep far from me. Much of the difficulty I have in raising my children comes, not so much from them, as it does from me.

Sin is a constant struggle. I often react when I should not. My temper flares and I say and do things that should remain unsaid and undone, and then I am left contemplating the truth that the wrath of man doesn't work the righteousness of God.

Last night when I awoke to these thoughts and an overwhelming sense of my own sinfulness, guilt, and depravity, I turned to Scripture in an effort to find the remedy for my state. Romans 6 was my choice and Matthew Henry was my friend and counsellor as I contemplated these passages. What follows are portions from his commentary on chapter 6 that served to comfort my soul even as I confessed my sin and utter need of Christ and Him alone for my salvation. Perhaps others have these same struggles that I have and will find the remedy for sin and comfort here that I have found. I slept soundly after thanking God for his mercy and provision for such as I.

~ Though sin may remain as an outlaw, though it may oppress as a tyrant, yet let it not reign as a king. Let it not make laws, nor preside in councils, nor command the militia; let it not be uppermost in the soul, so that we should obey it. Though we may be sometimes overtaken and overcome by it, yet let us never be obedient to it in the lusts thereof; let not sinful lusts be a law to you, to which you would yield a consenting obedience... Sin lies very much in the gratifying of the body, and humoring that...because it is a mortal body, and hastening apace to dust, therefore let not sin reign in it. It was sin that made our bodies mortal, and therefore do not yield obedience to such an enemy.

~Unrighteousness is unto sin; the sinful acts confirm and strengthen the sinful habits; one sin begets another; it is like the letting forth of water, therefore leave it before it be meddled with... As every sinful act confirms the sinful habit, and makes the nature more and more prone to sin (hence the members of a natural man are heare said to be servants of iniquity unto iniquity -- one sin makes the heart more disposed for another), so every gracious act confirms the gracious habit: serving righteousness is unto holiness; one duty fits us for another; and the more we do the more we may do for God. Our serving righteousness... an evidence of sanctification.

~ There is such an antipathy in our hearts by nature to holiness that it is no easy matter to bring them to submit to it: it is the Spirit's work, who persuades by such inducements as these set home upon the soul.

~The death of the cross was a slow death; the body, after it was nailed to the cross, gave many a throe and many a struggle: but it was a sure death, long in expiring, but expired at last; such is the mortification of sin in believers. [What comfort! - CG]

~Thus must we rise [from the grave of sin - CG] to live to God: this is what he calls newness of life (v.4), to live from other principles, by other rules, with other aims, than we have done. A life devoted to God is a new life; before, self was the chief and highest end, but now God. To live indeed is to live to God, with our eyes ever towards him, making him the centre of all our actions.

~It might be objected that we cannot conquer and subdue sin, it is unavoidably too hard for us: "No" says he, "you wrestle with an enemy that may be dealt with and subdued, if you will but keep your ground and stand to your arms; it is an enemy that is already foiled and baffled; there is strength laid up in the covenant of grace for your assistance if you will but use it. "Sin shall not have dominion." God's promises to us are more poweful and effectual for the mortifying of sin than our promises to God. Sin may struggle in a believer, and may create him a great deal of trouble, but it shall not have dominion; it may vex him, but shall not rule over him.

~[We are] not under the covenant of works, which requires brick, and gives no straw, which condemns upon the least failure, which runs thus, "Do this and live; do not do it and die;" but under the covenant of grace, which accepts sincerity as our gospel perfection, which requires nothing but what it promises strength to perform, which is herein well ordered, that every transgression in the covenant does not put us out of the covenant, and especially that it does not leave our salvation in our own keeping, but lays it up in the hands of the Mediator, who undertakes for us that sin shall not have dominion over us, who hath himself condemned it, and will destroy it; so that, if we pursue the victory, we shall come off more than conquerors.

~This is a very comfortable word to all true believers. If we were under the law, we were undone, for the law curses every one that continues not in every thing; but we are under grace, grace which accepts the willing mind, which is not extreme to mark what we do amiss, which leaves room for repentance, which promises pardon upon repentance; and what can be to an ingenuous mind a stronger motive than this to have nothing to do with sin? Shall we sin against so much goodness, abuse such love?... What can be more black and ill-natured than from a friend's extraordinary expressions of kindness and good-will to take occasion to affront and offend him? To spurn at such bowels, to spit in the face of such love, is that which, between man and man, all the world would cry out shame on.

~ We have need to be often reminded of our former state.

~... a freedom from righteousness is the worst kind of slavery.

~ Sinners merit hell, but saints do not merit heaven. There is no proportion between the glory of heaven and our obedience; we must thank God, and not ourselves, if ever we get to heaven. And this gift is through Jesus Christ our Lord. It is Christ that purchased it, prepared it, prepares us for it, preserves us to it; he is the Alpha and Omega, All in all in our salvation.

Therein lies my hope.

This is a Puzzler

"But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage? You observe days and months and seasons and years. I am afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain." Galatians 4:9-11

The epistle to the Galatians was written to correct the Church in Galatia from going back to the "weak and beggarly elements" of the Old Covenant worship. Not only was Paul talking about no further need for circumcision, but also the OT holy days, months, seasons, and years. These things all pointed forward to Christ and once Christ had come and fulfilled their types, they became redundant. Paul says to these Christians, in effect, don't do it. Don't circumcise, don't celebrate Passover, the Year of Jubilee or any of these other elements.

So why do some Christians insist of observing a "Christian" passover feast? Scripture knows of no such feast after Christ's resurrection.

Another thing I find puzzling and disturbing is the new superstition amongst some Protestants regarding the communion elements. I know of one father who will take his children to whichever church he can find that will serve communion to all his children right down to the infant. Now, don't get me wrong, I believe in a covenantal view of children, but it appears to me that for a father to deliberately expose his children to the negative sanctions attached to the Lord's Table before they are ready is to view the elements of the Lord's Table with a high degree of superstitious belief as to this means of grace. And I won't even get into the discussion of fencing the Table or occasional communing aspects of it.

Sometimes the current state of the Church makes me wish I liked stout or whiskey. A good stiff shot is sometimes called for.

The Passion of the Easter Bunny

I read a story yesterday of a church in Pennsylvania who wanted to demonstrate that the Easter Bunny was not truly a part of Christian worship. In the play they presented (rated G for General), they beat the Easter Bunny and attempted to crucify it in an attempt to make their point. I'm not sure, but they may have pelted it with easter eggs as well. Small children were traumatized and one small child asked, "Mama, why are they beating the bunny?"

What would Knox say of modern Protestant worship that adopts the customs of Rome contrary to Scripture?

It will be a glad day when all such superstitious observances such as Easter and Christmass are expunged by all Churches and pure worship is instituted.

Thought for the Day

"Man's chief end is neither his salvation nor destruction." Rev. 4:11.

At Least They Get Paid For It...

Unlike the rest of us slobs who advertise for free with our t-shirts, bags, shoes, etc.

SOMETIMES











Sometimes...
when you cry...
no one sees your tears.





Sometimes...
when you are in pain...
no one sees your hurt.





Sometimes...
when you are worried...
no one sees your stress.





Sometimes...
when you are happy...
no one sees your smile.





-







-
But FART!! Just ONE time...

And everybody knows!!



Gotcha!!! You thought it was going to be one of those
heart-touching stories!

[Special thanks to my Mom for these words of wisdom. ;o)]

The "Ewwww" Factor

I read a report not that long ago about the pathogens that are found lurking on most people's toothbrushes. The idea is that these pathogens get there because they originally came from your mouth and that you should replace your tooth brush frequently to prevent infecting and re-infecting yourself with them. The truth may be different than that. The pathogens may have another source.

Close the lid on your toilet before you flush. No, this message is not only for parents of toddlers who swish the brush in the water for fun. This message is for everyone who flushes the toilet with the lid up. Apparently, every time the toilet is flushed, a fine spray of fecal coliform contaminated water is sprayed up to 20 feet away from the toilet, coming to rest on your toothbrush.

I am putting up a new sign over all my toilets: Close Lid Before Flushing!

Appliances and Housewares

Ever notice how breakable the appliances and housewares have become? Almost everything has plastic parts now that break off easily. If our family can get two years out of a vacuum, we are doing well. The other day, a whole section of wheels came off the bottom of the vacuum and can't be put back on again. Fortunately, we still have the front wheels and it works without the back ones. Our carpet is low pile, so the extra close shave with the vacuum probably benefits it. The hose attachments are cracked and the top of the housing is being held together with black electrical tape because the place the screws go in cracked and the screws won't hold any more. I suppose if my husband and I were the only ones living here and cleaning, we would get a lot more mileage out of our vacuums. Kids are terribly hard on things. As soon as Costco brings out a coupon on their vacuums, I'll be replacing this one.

One solution to frequent vacuum replacement would be, of course, to do all the vacuuming myself. My kids would love it, I am sure, and my vacuum would survive much better because I would refrain from trying to suck up socks, kleenex, lego blocks, and stray cats. However, one of my goals in life is not to be a maid to my kids. As soon as they start to toddle, they are shown how to plug it in, turn it on, and push it.

Another item that sees a great deal of use is our kitchen stove. A few years ago my husband bought me a new stove from Costco for my birthday. Our other stove had given up the ghost and refused to be revived. This new stove starting showing signs of mortality within days of arriving at our home. It has a plastic housing around the part where the controls are. This cracked at both corners from the heat of the stove. As it was under warranty, we promptly had it replaced. It cracked again within days. We replaced it again. Again it cracked, and after it reached the point where the repair man recognized my voice on the phone, we gave up replacing it and instead have learned to love its "weathered" look. This stove is one of those glass-topped jobs, which I have come to love and adore. Cleaning out burner trays was the bane of my life and it was a rare day when I wouldn't find something incinerated in the bottom of one, or we didn't set off the smoke alarm because someone turned the burner on before cleaning it out. All I do with this one is give it a good wipe down and use a razor in a handle to scrape away what can't be wiped. When I die, I would like my stove top buried with me.

Something else that sees a lot of wear and tear in our home is the dishware. I have yet to find the dish that my family cannot destroy in record time. My original stoneware dish set that I was given upon marrying has long since disappeared. So have several sets of Corel Living Wear which, contrary to what they said, is quite capable of being broken and shattered with the additional drawback of breaking up into a zillion needle-sharp shards. Melamine dishes just aren't what they used to be. I remember watching one of the kids take one and put it upside down on the floor and then stomping on it so that it cracked. Of the 20 mugs we own, only 4 have handles on them.

[An aside: Why do children do these things? They say children learn most by example, but I assure you that my husband and I do not make it a habit to stomp on our dishware, walk on the dining table, or jump on the living room furniture. We also don't pick our noses and eat the pickings, shove foreign objects in them or plug the toilet with tinker toys and modelling clay.]

I thought I had found a solution to the dish dilemma when we invested in enamel dish ware that I found in the camping section of a local hardware store. It might become dented if you stomped it, but you couldn't break it into a jigsaw puzzle. Alas, the enamel chips. And when it chips, it begins to rust. I now am the proud owner of some plates and bowls that have rusted completely through in spots. We have to arrange the food carefully around these holes so that nothing leaks out upon the table.

If anyone has a solution, beyond investing in paperplates, please let me know.

Unbiblical Patriarchy

Goodness is good in and of itself. Evil is some form of goodness perverted. This article shows what happens when a proper Biblical patriarchy is perverted.

PLAN for THE NEXT "SURVIVOR" SERIES

(I don't know who wrote this, but I think the women who read here will find it amusing.)
****
Six married men
will be dropped
on an island with
1 car
and 4 kids each,
for 6 weeks.

Each kid plays two sports
and either takes
music or dance classes.

****
There is no access to fast food.
****
Each man must take care of his 4 kids,
keep his assigned house clean, correct all homework,
complete science projects, cook, do laundry, etc.
****
The men only have access to television
When the kids are asleep and
all chores are done.

There is only one TV between them
and there is
NO REMOTE

*****
The men must shave their legs,
wear makeup daily,
which they must apply themselves,
either while driving or
while making four lunches.

*****
They must attend weekly PTA meetings;

*****
clean up after their sick children at 3:00 a.m.;

*****
make an Indian hut model with
six toothpicks,
a tortilla
and one marker;
*****
and get a 4-year-old to eat a serving of peas.
*****
The kids vote them off the island, based on performance.

*****The last man wins .......only if .............
he has enough energy to be intimate
with his spouse at a moment's notice.

*****
If the last man does win, he can play the game over and
over again for the next 18-25 years
....eventually earning the right to be called
***"Mother."***

Buff

I have been going to the gym more frequently of late, and concentrating more on the weight training. The result is that my weight has stayed about the same, but I am definitely seeing more muscle definition and a change in shape. I just wish I didn't hate working out so much. :o(

A Wonderful Horrible Time of the Year

We have now entered that wonderful time of the year when the geese honk their way across the sky, the sere grass gradually turns green, the sun rises earlier and stays up later, and I am full of energy and a zest for living.

Too bad all I can see is dirt. Dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt! AUGGGGGHHH!

The walls of my bedroom are so clean you could eat off them, supposing you could persuade the food to stick to them. My closets are organized, the winter clothes put away and our spring and summer wardrobe is either hanging in them, or waiting in a laundry basket to be ironed. And the rest of my house is a total disaster.

Yes folks, its THAT time of year ? Spring cleaning time! For the next week or so, the entire house will be turned upside down, shaken vigorously, scrubbed, polished, painted, vaccumed, shampooed, and manicured into some semblance of order and cleanliness that will last approximately 1.5 hours.

Spring cleaning is a bad habit I developed after living with my neatnick mother during the vulnerably impressionable years of my childhood. I haven't been able shake it try as I might. One year I tried to go without spring cleaning, but I developed a facial tic as a result and went into a cleaning frenzy by July that took my children several months to recover from. They still get a haunted look in their eyes when I bring out the buckets and cleaning rags.

One of the current projects being undertaken at the moment is the painting and wall papering of the girls' bedroom. I bought the paint, wallpaper, and fabric for new curtains two years ago, and Hannah has finally reached the age where I can shove most of the work onto her young shoulders while I pretend to help. She has already spackled the holes in the wall and sanded them and Trahern successfully repaired the hole where the doorknob went through. Tomorrow they are going to paint the ceiling white to cover all the bug splats from many generations of mosquitoes that met an untimely death there. My upstairs hall would give the fire marshall a coronary because it is nearly impassable from the furniture moved from the bedroom. I just pray none of the children decides to light the house on fire until it is moved back.

Another project for this year will hopefully be the completion of the installation of the upstairs bathroom sink. A considerable number of our children have lived all their lives without benefit of a bathroom sink. The house we are currently living in was built by my husband thirteen years ago. That means that children numbered 6 - 11 have learned to brush their teeth, and wash their hands and face in the bath tub. They feel strange using bathroom sinks when in other people's homes. I managed to persuade my husband to install the sink in the downstairs' bath before Garnet's birth so that the midwife would have a place to wash her hands besides the toilet bowl. Then when I was expecting Elodie, I managed to make it known that I would remain pregnant and miserable until the bathroom sink for our ensuite was installed. It was installed in record time. However, producing a baby every couple of years is entirely too drastic a method of getting the house finished. I am hoping that the thought of having 10 people, who are visiting us this summer for the wedding/receptions, jockeying for position at our ensuite door so they can brush their teeth will be enough to do to do the trick this time. I'll let you know if I was right.

I want to scream!

This makes me mad!

Hope until the Last Breath...

The death of Robert Devereaux, Second Earl of Essex:

"My sins are more in number than the hairs of my head", he somberly acknowledged. "I have bestowed my youth in pride, lust, uncleanness, vainglory and divers other sins:. For these failings he craved pardon of the Almighty and "especially for this my last sin, this great, this bloody, this crying and this infectious sin, whereby so many for the love of me have ventured...to offend their sovereign". Hailing the axeman as " the minister of true justice", he knelt down to pray, and then laid his head on the block. At the suggestion of one of the officiating divines, he began to recite out loud the fifty-first Psalm, but after completing the second verse he cried out, "Executioner, strike home." Even as he resumed commending his soul to God, he was silenced in mid-sentence as the axe came crashing down.

Taken from page 545 of Elizabeth I by Anne Somerset

"Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, "If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us." But the other, answering , rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong."

Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom."

And Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise."

taken from Luke 23:39-43, NKJV

I cite both of the above as examples of why we should never give up hope on those who are going astray. In the first example, we have no way of ascertaining in this life whether or not Essex truly died in Christ, but his last days certainly demonstrate a repentance that appears to have been genuine. In the second instance we have a man we know infallibly is with the Lord. Both of these men wasted their entire lives in folly of one sort or another. But God can and does graciously bring His children Home, whether early or late, to the praise of His glorious grace.

Let the parents of all prodigals strengthen themselves in this and not lose hope.

Thoughts on Proud Jackasses

Brother John has posted a very good blog post on the problems of theological intellectual jackasses who look into the mysteries of God, not so that they might glorify and love Him and His people better, but so that they might take part in debates and delight in annihilating the opposition. His post is a potent reminder that we need to take care that our knowledge does not puff us up, but rather leads us to see how great the gulf is between Creator and creature, a right apprehensions of the mercy of God in Christ, and how great our dependancy is upon Him.

Transparency, or Lack of It

The other day I had a client at my house who also happens to be a homeschooling mom like me. We were discussing parenting in general and she mentioned that a recent homeschool mom's meeting was one of the most dissatisfying that she had ever attended. The topic for the evening was parenting and people were to bring books they found helpful in teaching them to be a good parent, or discuss counsel they found helpful in assisting them in the parenting role. The upshot of the whole evening was that this mother went away from it thinking that she was the only one who is often puzzled, astounded, and flummoxed by her children. At least, she was the only one who admitted to it. Everyone else had on their "we're homeschoolers and we're okay" faces.

It is too bad I wasn't there with her that evening. At the very least she would have had the comfort of knowing that she isn't the only one who is regularly flummoxed by her kids.

One of the myths of homeschooling that I bought into when I first started nearly 20 years ago, is that if you homeschool your children, you will have children who will be normally socialized and you will avoid the rebellious teen years because your children will not be exposed to the peer group and all the rebellious attitudes that can infect them from it. It took me a while to remember that public schools are a new invention and human rebellion goes back to the dawn of time. In the course of history, children were mainly homeschooled a great deal of the time, and rebellion still happened in spite of it.

Another myth is that Proverbs' advice is a guarantee that if you train a child in the way he should go, he won't depart from it. Some Christian parenting books drill it into you that if your kids stray, it is all your fault. You obviously didn't train them right. As a result, I was highly judgemental of other parents who had kids who were giving them fits, since my little darlings were doing just fine then.

Teens really have a way of humbling parents.

By that you may be surmising that I have a teen who is currently giving me fits, and you would surmise correctly. (Names are being withheld to protect the guilty.) If you have read books about Christian parenting and believe that kids who do this are the result of parents who did it wrong, then you need look no further than me for:

Exhibit A -- Reformed Parent who did it ALL WRONG
Avoid her example.

Well ok, I didn't do ALL of it wrong, but I haven't done all of it right either. But who does? God is a perfect Heavenly Father and His children rebel against Him all the time for no good reason.

Growth is terribly painful. Last night I was reading Seven Habits of Highly Effective Peopleby Stephen Covey (yes, he's a Mormon, but the principles expressed are true, nonetheless). Some of the things in it hit pretty close to home and I wanted to hurl the book across the room, except I was at the gym and the other patrons wouldn't have appreciated getting dinged in the head with it. I hate seeing my faults. I would rather believe that I am just fine, thank you. But [sighs heavily] I see there is still a lot that needs refining out of me and I think this is going to be yet another means for doing so.

Which brings me back to the whole transparency thing. Homeschoolers (especially those with large numbers of children who tend to intimidate others by sheer number and the assumptions that go with it) are unable to help one another if they don't admit to having faults, let alone confessing them. Proverbs is true. If you train a child in the way he should go, he won't depart from it when he is older, providing that he is one of God's elect. Parents are one of the means that God uses for bringing children into the fold, but the means are not the grace itself.

By the way, I haven't been a complete failure. One of my wandering daughters has been making rapid strides back to the fold. She isn't here yet, but I can definitely see that the Lord is teaching her some painful but valuable lessons. And my eldest son looks like he is through the worst of the adolescent doldrums without too many scars. I didn't want you all to think it was completely hopeless here.

Recovered Memories

When you have babies, they do so many cute or endearing things that you think you will always remember what they did when they get older. The sad fact is, that you often forget things as time goes on and more facts and information are accumulated in your brain, particularly if you have substantially more than 1.8 children. You forget which child did what unless you happen to be organized enough to keep a notebook on each child and can find the time to write it down.

It is interesting how our brains process, store, and retrieve memories. A sudden whiff of some aroma, a song from long ago, or the taste of a food that you haven't eaten in a long time can bring back memories you had long forgotten.

I had the weird sensation of reliving my daughter Tamara's babyhood when she was in the hospital recently. They say that when you undergo some sort of trauma, there is a tendency to regress and do some particular behavior that is comforting. Tamara did this. When she was unconscious from her concussion, they intubated her and then tranquilized her to keep her from pulling all the tubes and the iv's out. When I saw her, what was curiously heart-wrenching and what transported me back to the past was the way she was sucking on the tube that was breathing for her. Her tongue was doing the same thing it used to do when she was a baby and had fallen asleep at the breast, or when she had her soother in her mouth. That, more than anything is what came closest to undoing my calm. The entire time I was in the hospital with her and she was sleeping as I watched by her bedside, I kept seeing, not the big girl of seven that she is now, but the little baby I had cuddled so long. The memories were pleasant, once I knew she was past danger.

On a slightly different topic, it was very gratifying to see the strength of familial bonds at this time. Tamara can be a solitary person who enjoys her own company, but she also has a strong need to be with her own family. She is one of those kids who frequently has to smack the ants in her pants in order to sit still in church. As the days went by in the hospital, while I could see she was getting stronger and recovering, she was also becoming quieter and somewhat morose -- almost depressed. Her whole being just lit up whenever her father brought her brothers and sisters in to see her. Once she got home, recovery was very swift and happy. It was also delightful to see how the other children rallied round and took care of and were concerned for her and each other at this time.

"How good and pleasant it is when brethren dwell together in unity."

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San Francisco City Hall Scene
"Next."

"Good morning. We want to apply for a marriage
license."

"Names?"

"Tim and Jim Jones."

"Jones? Are you related? I see a resemblance."

"Yes, we're brothers."

"Brothers? You can't get married."

"Why not? Aren't you giving marriage licenses to same
gender couples?"

"Yes, thousands. However, we haven't had any
siblings. That's incest!"

"Incest?" No, we are not gay."

"Not gay? Then why do you want to get married?"

"For the financial benefits, of course. In addition,
we do love each other. Besides, we don't have any
other prospects."

"But we're issuing marriage licenses to gay and
lesbian couples who've been denied equal protection
under the law. If you are not gay, you can get
married to a woman."

"Wait a minute. A gay man has the same right to marry
a woman as I have. However, just because I'm straight
doesn't mean I want to marry a woman. I want to marry
Jim."

"And I want to marry Tim, Are you going to
discriminate against us just because we are not gay?"

"All right, all right. I'll give you your license.
Next."

"Hi. We are here to get married."

"Names?"

"John Smith, Jane James, Robert Green, and June
Johnson."

"Who wants to marry whom?"

"We all want to marry each other."

"But there are four of you!"

"That's right. You see; we're all bisexual. I love
Jane and Robert, Jane loves June and me, June loves
Robert and Jane, and Robert loves June and me. All of
us getting married together is the only way that we
can express our sexual preferences in a marital
relationship."

"But we've only been granting licenses to gay and
lesbian couples."

"So you're discriminating against bisexuals!"

"No, it's just that, well, the traditional idea of
marriage is that it's just for couples."

"Since when are you standing on tradition?"

"Well, I mean, you have to draw the line somewhere."

"Who says? There's no logical reason to limit
marriage to couples, the more the better. Besides, we
demand our rights! The mayor says the constitution
guarantees equal protection under the law. Give us a
marriage license!"

"All right, all right. Next."

"Hello, I'd like a marriage license."

"In what names?"

"David Deets."

"And the other man?"

"That's all. I want to marry myself."

"Marry yourself? What do you mean?"

"Well, my psychiatrist says I have a dual personality,
so I want to marry the two together. Maybe I can file
a joint income-tax return."

"That does it! I quit!! You people are making a
mockery of marriage!!"

[Thanks to Milly for passing this logical endpoint to gay marriage along.]

Click Your Fat Away

No, I am not talking about clicking your heels together a hundred gazillion times a day like a Dorothy with obsessive compulsive disorder. (Are we in Kansas yet, Toto?) Rather I am talking about a "clicker" or pedometer, for measuring how many steps a day that you take.

A few weeks ago I was in Costco doing the weekly annihilation to the grocery budget when I found a box called "Walking" in the book section. I usually try to avoid the book section because it is just too tempting to give in and buy a discounted book that looks so good and necessary for my library. That week was no exception. I naughtily pried open the taped box and had a look inside. There, nestled snugly in the bubblewrap was a pedometer along with a book. Perfect! The perfect gift for a slightly obsessive compulsive friend who likes to walk and has a numbers mania as well. I had been wondering what in the world to give her.

But...

Hmmm. I could use one of those too. Nah!

Next week I bought one for myself. Why? Well, I am already working out at a gym, but things have not been shifting for me as quickly as I would like them to. I wanted to have some way of measuring my activity level for the day to get an accurate snapshot of what I am or am not doing. The clicker is now letting me know. What is even better about this, is that I found myself doing exactly what a study on pedometer use said would happen -- it motivates me to increase my activity levels. There is nothing worse than getting to the end of the day and seeing you only walked a total of 2697 steps, most of which you probably clocked while walking around the kitchen getting something to eat.

I had an exceptionally good day yesterday, getting in over 120 000 steps, but I suspect that is because I forgot to reset my clicker to zero from the day before. :o( My best day so far was just under 100 000. My weight hasn't changed much, but I notice that my "love handles" on my hips are disappearing and that my jeans are getting decidedly loose about the gut area.

Now if I could just quit watching the Pilates video and actually do it...

About the only categories below that I think are accurate is the ones dealing with orderliness and openmindedness. I like order. Having nine kids at home to constantly mess things up helps to keep me from being obsessive about it. I think I am more of an extrover than an introvert, but I resent the implication that I am a bubblehead that doesn't reflect on things. I also do not think that my friendliness necessarily means that I am too much of a follower. I like to think I am a discriminating follower. I am probably not as emotionally stable as I would like to be or as I tested for. It depends on how much coffee or stimulants I have had. Too much coffee does nasty things to my impulse control. :oP

Big Five Test Results

Extroversion (66%) moderately high which suggests you are talkative, optimistic, sociable and affectionate but possibly not very reflective. Friendliness (68%) moderately high which suggests you are good natured, trusting, and helpful but possibly too much of a follower Orderliness (84%) very high which suggests you are extremely organized, reliable, neat, and ambitious but probably not very spontaneous and fun. Emotional Stability (76%) high which suggests you are very relaxed, calm, secure, unemotional but possibly too unobservant of your feelings. Openmindedness (56%) moderately high which suggests you are intellectual, curious, imaginative but possibly not very practical.

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Wild Wedding Weekend

Some young friends of mine are getting married this summer and having a double reception here in PG. It promises to be the highlight of my summer because we are going to have a houseful with approximately 8-12 extra people on top of the 11 inmates that already live here. Most of the people coming are Covenanters, and for the first time in a long time, we will have all three elders together with us. In short, we will be having an informal Covenanter Convention with a wedding, two receptions (one gal is marrying in the US because of stupid US immigration rules, but having the reception here with her sister), lots of discussion, eschatology talk, food, games, hilarity, sleepovers, and perhaps even a giant communion service on the Lord's Day. I can hardly wait!

My only worry is that I have volunteered to make both wedding cakes, using my Great Aunt Bernette's recipe for white cake. (Want me to save you a piece, Mom?) I will be pouring over the Martha Stewart wedding cake book in the coming weeks once we are able to secure the copy from the library in the hopes that it will help prevent me making a complete hash of it! I'm nothing if not adventurous. [sighs]

Princess of the Mudroom

I have a new apprentice, in my role as Queen of the Mudroom. She is not quite two years old, is as cute as a button, and extremely bright. It is Princess Punkadunk, aka Elodie.

Elodie has been demonstrating great diligence when it comes to helping me with the laundry. As soon as she sees me heading for the mudroom, she trails after me and assists me in removing the dry laundry from the dryer. Then she takes out the lint trap and cleans it, putting the lint in the waste basket, replaces the trap in the machine. Next, she waits patiently by me for the wet clothing I hand her which she then puts in the dryer, bit by bit. When I have no more to hand her, she slams the door shut and I start the machine.Elodie also likes to help me with folding, although the results are less than neat and tidy.

I love this toddler stage when they are able to do all kinds of new things and behave like little people instead of little blobs of pooping, drooling humanity. Actually, I think I like all the stages of babyhood and think the current one they are in is the best.

A Tribute to My Parents
This evening I came across some lyrics to some songs by Paul Overstreet, and one of the songs reminded me of something I wanted to do – pay honor to my Mom and Dad while they are able to still hear it or read it. So often we leave things unsaid thinking that a better opportunity with the right conditions will come along for saying it. I learned not that long ago from my daughters’ accident that we can lose people when we least expect it and when that happens, the things we wish we had said get caught in our throats and nearly choke us.

Too bad we can’t hear the music to go with this. Mom and Dad, this song is for you.
(And in case anyone is wondering, my parents are much younger than the parents in this song.)

What’s Going Without Saying
By Paul Overstreet

He stood looking at his father who
Was 85 years old
He remembered all the ball games
They played so long ago
Then he put his arm around him and
Kissed him on the cheek
He said Dad its time I told you
What a friend you’ve been to me

Chorus
Cause when you love someone
You gotta let ‘em know
When you’re thinking of someone
You need to tell ‘em so
Don’t know what makes us think our minds
And our hearts can be read
What’s goin’ without sayin’ should be said.

She stood in the kitchen doorway
All grown up with children too
Watching as her mama cooked just
Like she used to do
She slowly walked up to her and she
Held her wrinkled hands
She said do you know you are the
Greatest mom a daughter ever had

Cause when you love someone
You gotta let ‘em know
When you’re thinking of someone
You need to tell ‘em so
Don’t know what makes u s think our minds
And our hearts can be read
What’s going without sayin
Should be said

No one needs our roses
When the sun of life’s gone down
If you’re gonna send a message of your love
Then send it now

I don’t believe I’ve let you hear the
The things you should have heard
I don’t believe I’ve truly put my
Feelings into words
But to me you are so beautiful
Much more than words can say
But if you don’t mind and you’ve
Got the time I’d like to try today

‘Cause when you love someone
You gotta let ‘em know
When you’re thinking of someone
You need to tell them so
Don’t know what makes us think our minds
And our hearts can be read
What’s going without saying
Should be said.

Now why was I not surprised?!!?


You are Lucy!


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Carmon Goes One Better

Carmon did a much better (and kinder) version of the sappy email I got the other day. Here it is:

To The One Chosen by God
God doesn't need your picture as He has your name inscribed on the palms of His hands.
He who searches hearts sees Jesus Christ living in you,
And if you abide in Him, keeping His commandments,
You will bear fruit and be blessed with joy unspeakable,
And every perfect gift which comes from the Father of Lights, the Sun of Righteousness.
God hears the fervent prayer of a righteous man
And changes your desires to be in accord with His will.
Face it, to be chosen to be a friend of God is a mystery of grace you don't deserve.

Gratefully accept the loving providence of Almighty God, for Whose glory and pleasure you were created, and let His strength support your weakness so you can run with endurance the race set before you. Amen.

Forward to every Christian you know who is facing trials and temptations...on second thought, just send it to every Christian you know.

John Knox: My Hero!

If you have been paying attention to the url for this blog, you will have noticed that part of the address is "knoxknoxwhosthere." This was the result of some playful punning on the name of a man who I have come to admire greatly: John Knox, Scottish Reformer.

Knox was the man primarily responsible for arresting Scotland's decline and decay into the brutish ignorance and oppression that papal tyranny had produced, and for beginning the climb up to the religious and civil freedoms that not only impacted his nation, but which has spread to many countries around the world. This is an admirable accomplishment, but it is not the primary reason why I have come to love him.

I love John Knox because he was an example of some one who took an uncompromising stand for truth, no matter what the cost, no matter who was offended, and no matter what dangers it forced him into. He faced down raging nobles and a queen who dared to promote the false religion of the papacy. He faced personal danger from those who wished to assassinate him. His language was strong and forthright and he often preached and rebuked sin pointedly from his pulpit, not regarding the stations of those that he knew would be offended. Thomas M'Crie says of Knox:

A stranger to complimentary or smooth language, little concerned about the manner in which his reproofs were received, provided they were merited, too much impressed with the evil of the offence, to think of the rank or character of the offender, he often uttered his admonitions with 'an acrimony and vehemence more apt to irritate than to reclaim.' But he protested at a time when persons are least in danger of deception, and in a manner which should banish suspicions of the purity of his motives, that, in his sharpest rebukes, he was influenced by hatred of the vices, not the persons of the vicious, and that his aiim was always to discharge his own duty, and if possible, to reclaim the guilty.

We may think that Knox's uncompromising stand and vehement charges against the sins of the leaders of the day would also translate into his being a person who was cold and stern in his religion. Knox did have a reputation for being austere, but not unfeeling. He rigidly adhered to God's justice, and yet, there are more instances on record of his interceding for the pardon of crminals than perhaps any other man of his time.

We may often trace the true character of a man by the reactions of his own family and domestics to him. Knox was held in great love and esteem, not only by his wife and children, but by his servants -- a very telling thing indeed. Bannatyne, one of his personal servants, said this of his master upon Knox's death:

"In this manner," says he,"departed this man of God: the light of Scotland, the comfort of the church within the same, the mirror of godliness, and pattern and example to all true ministers, in purity of life, soundness in doctrine, and boldness in reproving of wickedness; one that cared not the favor of men, how great soever they were. What dexterity in teaching, boldness in reproving, and hatred of wickedness was in him, my ignorant dulness is not able to declare, which if I should prize to set out, it were as one who would light a candle to let men see the sun; seeing all his virtues are better known and notified to the world a thousand fold than I am able to express."

Between Knox and his fellow ministers we never read of any discord. He was hated and dreaded by the profane and licentious, but the religious and sober held him in great veneration and affection. In private life he was revered by his friends, and though subject to melancholy and depression because of continued illness, he enjoyed the pleasures of company when he was feeling well, and was not above taking pleasure in jokes and humor, notwithstanding the grave tone of his general character.

This extremely brief description of Knox's character has a point behind it. Knox exemplified the Christian fortitude that all Christians must have if they are to live the Christian life devoid of denying the Lord. All too often, we can betray our principles in the face of fear of either family, friends, co-workers and acquaintances. Popularity, the desire to please, a need for love and acceptance, and just fear are powerful motivators that can cause us to be silent when we should speak, or keep us quiet when we should be active. We pull our punches or compromise in order to minimize the pain we think we would feel if we did take a bold stand. Yet the Lord promises us that we are BLESSED if we do suffer for the sake of righteousness, and it is by keeping an eye on the eternal God and the Promiser of this promise that we may overcome these things.

I close with Knox's dying testimony:

"The day now approaches and is before the door, for which I have frequently and vehemently thirsted, when I shall be released from my great labours and innumerable sorrows, and shall be with Christ. And now, God is my witness, whom I have served in spirit, in the gospel of his Son, that I have taught nothing but the true and solid doctrine of the gospel of the Son of God, and have had it for my only object to instruct the ignorant, to confirm the faithful, to comfort the weak, the fearful, and the distressed, by the promises of grace, and to fight against the pround and rebellious, by the divine threatenings. I know that many have frequently and loudly complained, and do yet complain, of my too great severity; but God knows that my mind was always void of hatred to the persons of those against whom I thundered the severest judgements. I cannot deny but that I felt the greatest abhorrence at the sins in which they indulged, but I still kept this one thing in view, that if possible I might gain them to the Lord. What influenced me to utter whatever the Lord put into my mouth so boldly, with out respect of persons, was a reverential fear of my God, who called, and of his grace appointed me to be a steward of divine mysteries, and a belief that he will demand an account of my discharge of the trust committed unto me, when I shall stand before his tribunal. I profess, therefore, before God, and before his holy angels, that I never made merchandise of the sacred word of God, never studied to please men, never indulged my private passions or those of others, but faithfully distributed the talent intrusted to me, for the edification of the church over which I watched. Whatever obloquy wicked men may cast on me respecting this point, I rejoice in the testimony of a good conscience. In the mean time, my dearest brethren, do you persevere in the eternal truth of the gospel; wait diligently on the flock over which the Lord has set you, and which he redeemed with the blood of his only begotten Son. And thou, my brother Lawson, fight the good fight, and do the work of the Lord joyfully and resolutely. The Lord from on high bless you and the the whole church of Edinburgh, against whom, as long as they persevere in the word of truth which they have heard of me, the gates of hell shall not prevail."

After Knox died, and as he was being laid to rest in his grave, the newly elected regent, Morton, said of him, "There lies he, who never feared the face of man." May the same be said of us some day. Amen.

Why Nerds Are Unpopular

Far be it from me to suggest that I am some sort of genius or exceptionally bright person, but the article linked in the title to this post really resonated with me. (It is well worth reading.) I was not a popular child, particularly in my elementary and middle-school years. It was a common occurance to have classmates come up to me and say, "You know, last year I didn't like you and thought you were weird, but now I think you are okay. "

In high school I hung out with a small group of the "goody goody" crowd and, for the most part, stayed out of trouble. I just wasn't interested in drinking myself into a stupor, experimenting with drugs, or being a vandal. The best times I had in highschool came from spending every spare moment with Hans Hedley, my art teacher, who was a true Renaissance man with knowledge on nearly every subject under the sun. Before classes, lunch hours, after school, you could find me hanging out with Hans. I credit him with being the one who taught me how to think and be curious about how things work and I owe him a debt that can never be repaid. I think I learned more in three years of classes with him than I did in all my other classes combined.

I think it is easy for parents to forget the kind of damage that herds of children can inflict on each other. One of the knee-jerk reactions one often hears from those who don't homeschool is, "What about socialization?" as though the only proper way to socialize children is in age-segragated peer groups. The socialization that takes place in the school setting is some of the most unnatural and evil and cruel that there is, outside the prison system. And yet, this is supposedly the "real world" that people need to be socialized to.

Poppycock! Proper real world socialization means learning to interact gracefully and well with people of all generations outside of one's peer group. Real world socialization is what my kids experience in their day to day life. The result has been children who have no difficulty in talking to or playing with siblings or other children smaller than themselves, and likewise, who have no difficulty in interacting with adults. Depravity still raises its ugly head, but at least it isn't reinforced as a cultural norm.

Changes

If you look at my sidebar, there are a few additions and some subtractions from my list of linked blogs. Chris has been demoted from being a doctor. I finally figured out what the problem was. If your blog no longer appears there, please take no offense. I still read you, but don't know how to change the size of the box to accomodate more. Since space is limited, I wanted to list blogs that are more reflective of my own worldview than not.

Antithesis

Every once in a while I get some kitschy Christian poety in my email. The following was sent to me by a friend (who ought to know better :oP).

To A Beautiful Person
If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it.
If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it
He sends you flowers every spring.
He sends you a sunrise every morning.
Whwevever you wnt to talk, He listens.
He can liver anywhere in the universe, but He chose your heart.
Face it friend, He is crazy about you!

God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain,
but He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way.

Forward to every beautiful person that you know.

Here is my version:

The Reality: To a Sinful Person


If God had your picture
He would likely burn it along with you if you don't repent
He doesn't need a wallet since he owns everything...
so don't bother to see if your picture is there
And did you remember to thank and praise him for the sunrise this morning, you ungrateful wretch?
Your unrepentance makes your prayers vain and He doesn't hear them
The heavens are as brass against you.
Face it friend,
Unless God does a work of grace in your heart
You are LOST
God promises an eternity of pain, sorrow and every imaginable torment ahead of you.
Repent now before it is too late.

Please forward to every sinner you know.

This and That

~It is amazing how large a chunk of time is used up in a day when you have to go out to chiropracter's appointments. After several weeks of appointments, the girls' backs have made significant improvement so the frequency of visits is slowing down some.

~Today it is half snowing/half raining and it is gross. My mudroom will soon be living up to its name.

~ Give kids the basic tools of learning and then let them loose to learn. I never used to be an unschooler, but I am leaning more and more that way. When kids are learning for a purpose, rather than just because they are told they need to know "xyz" in grade "x", their learning is accelerated and more lasting. My eldest son is reading Calvin's Institutes,but has also educated himself thoroughly in the last several weeks on the intricacies of buying a used car. I am forcing him to learn algebra and I don't know why. Well, actually, I do. "Everyone" says that you need it. Nuts to "everyone." I haven't used algebra since I took it in highschool, and I bet you haven't either unless you are an engineer. You know what I really want? A good highschool level consumer math course that teaches kids practical math stuff like how to calculate mortgage rates and figure out ways to keep money out of the clutches of Revenue Canada. If they need to know more beyond that because of career requirements, they are smart enough to pick it up on their own. They have the basics. Let them learn the other stuff when it is relevant and therefore meaningful.

~In an effort to help conserve the money my sweetie works so hard for, I cleaned out my freezer before making my grocery list. I found:

+ a total of 6 packages of frozen ground beef, each package weighing about 3 or 4 lbs.
+ three whole turkeys and 9 packages of turkey necks, wings, and drumsticks for making soup with
+ two packages of beef soup bones
+ blueberries I had thought were lost [Yeah! now I can have a protein shake!]
+ numerous packages of frozen, chopped peppers that I cut up for tossing in pots of chili
+ several packages of phyllo pastry that have seen better days. I can't even remember why I bought them.
+ bags of green beans that were covered in freezer burn.
+ a bag of cauliflower that is at least five years old.
+ two wild salmon with an expression of perpetual surprise frozen on their faces, no doubt put there by finding themselves so far from the ocean.
+ ummm. A placenta. hmmm. I think I'll plant a new tree this spring when the ground thaws. :oP Anyone for stew?

I also scooped up several dustpans full of frozen peas and assorted berries that had escaped their respective bags and made their way to the bottom of the freezer. Lots of stuff was covered in sticky brown frozen syrup from frozen over ripe bananas that the kids had neglected to seal tightly in their bags.

You will all be happy to know that my freezer is now clean and tidy and organized once more. And the placenta is safely stowed in a special place so I won't mistakenly cook it up as liver. I feel so accomplished!

My other Passion: Glyconutrients

The following article helps explain why.

The Healing of A Healer
One of world's leading physicians says that glyconutrients help save his life and should become a part of the nation's standard of medical care.

By Joseph Green-Bishop
Copyright 2004

Dr. Benjamin Solomon Carson Sr., the world famous director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore has risen to the very top of the medical profession. Three years ago, Time Magazine and CNN named him one of the top twenty doctors in America. In 1987 he was the lead surgeon in the twenty-two hour operation that separated the heads of the Binder Siamese twins from Germany. It was the first such operation in which both twins survived.

But in the summer of 2003 Dr. Carson was diagnosed with prostate cancer and despite three decades of saving the lives of others, he came face to face with the staggering possibility of his own death. "It was a shock," said Dr. Carson, a professor of neurosurgery, oncology, plastic surgery and pediatrics at Johns Hopkins. "I had been living a healthy lifestyle and getting regular check-ups. But I had high grade cancer in a very aggressive form."

And yet, at fifty-three years of age, Dr. Carson was not ready to leave his wife, Candy, and their three sons behind. And with the same strength and determination that his mother, Sonya Carson, imparted to him and his brother while she raised them alone in inner city neighborhoods in Detroit and Boston, he sought an answer that would continue his life.

"I had a friend who was diagnosed with cancer who was given three months to live," said Dr. Carson in his Johns Hopkins office."He changed his diet and pursued proper nutrition. He was still around and doing well. As a result I started to look at nutritional supplements."

The father of one of Dr. Carson's patients told him about a ten-year-old company based in Coppell, Texas which had secured world-wide patent rights to a food supplement known as a glyconutrient. The parent suggested to Dr. Carson that he contact them.

After contacting the company, Dr. Carson was surprised by the amount of science they provided. "I was impressed that they did not make any wild medical claims," he said. The majority of their science pointed to how glyconutrients supported the body's normal functions of regeneration and repair.

Dr. Carson then contacted Dr. Reg McDaniel, an authority in glyconutrients and medical director of Manna-Relief Inc., an Arlington, Texas based charity that makes glyconutrients available to medically fragile children around the world. Dr. McDaniel, who had studied the health benefits of glyconutrients for two decades, shared his experiences with Dr. Carson.

"The science made sense to me," Dr. Carson said. "God gave us (in plants) what we need to remain healthy," he said. "In today's world our food chain is depleted of nutrients and our environment has helped destroy what God gave us."

Through dietary supplementation, one of the most significant doctors in the history of medicine decided to support his immune system with glyconutrients. And almost immediately he saw an abatement in his condition.

"I had been experiencing some urinary tract problems. The problems went away within four weeks after I started taking the glyconutrients," he said. "I began to think that I did not need to have surgery or any other type of treatment. I seriously considered not having any type of procedure. I thought I could beat the cancer by supporting my body through glyconutritional supplementation."

Dr. Carson said his decision to have a medical procedure resulted from his concern for those people who might neglect traditional medical procedures because they had learned of his personal experience with supplements.

"It had gotten out that I had prostate cancer," said the high-profile doctor. "I knew that other people with my condition might not have been as religious about taking the supplements as I had been."

Dr. Carson was told that his recovery after the surgery would be arduous and that he would not be able to return to work for six weeks. "Because of my experience with glyconutrients I was able to return to work in three weeks," he said.

He continues to take the supplements and suggests that others who are concerned with optimal health take them. "I do not see glyconutrients as unnatural," he said. "I see them as complementary to traditional medicine. Dietary supplements should become an integral part of heath care in this country."

A voracious reader of medical and scientific literature, Dr. Carson said that he concurred with an article in the February 2003 issue of Technology Review, a publication associated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, that named glycomics as "one of ten emerging technologies that will change the world."

"There is a growing trend by consumers to want to blend traditional and complementary medicines," stated Dr. Carson.

He said that it was significant that the National Institutes of Health had granted millions of dollars to researchers to investigate alternative and complementary medicines. "The day is coming when the science will be behind them."

In 1998, The United States Congress appropriated $50 million to support the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, which was established by the National Institutes of Health to investigate alternatives and complementary medical practices and their impact on health care in America.

Researchers at the Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center have reportedly identified a plant substance that they say has effectively destroyed cancer cells in test tube experiments. Recognizing that the vast majority of prescription drugs originally came from plants, they have said that it is not inconceivable that a cure for cancer can be found in nature.

Nearly thirty years ago, Dr. Roger J. Williams, a professor at the University of Texas in Austin and the first biochemist to become president of the American Chemical Society, authored a book entitled Nutrition Against Disease. "The human body heals itself and nutrition provides the resources to accomplish the task," Dr. Williams wrote."A proper diet could prevent catastrophic illnesses such as cancer, alcoholism, heart disease, birth defects, stroke and mental illness."

Dr. Williams postulated that there was a direct result between diet and obesity, that a proper diet would prolong life. He also wrote about the relationship between arthritis and nutrition.

In the April 1995 issue of the Harvard Health Letter, which was devoted to "cancer-fighting foods," Dr. Tim Byers, an epidemiologist, said "there's an explosion of compelling and consistent data associating diets rich in fruits and vegetables with a lower cancer risk."

"Analysis of data from twenty-three epidemiologic studies found that a diet rich in vegetables and grains slashed colon cancer risk by 40 percent," the authors wrote. "All in all, at least 200 epidemiologic studies from around the world have found a link between a plant-rich diet and a lower risk for many types of tumors."

Dr. Carson stated that a growing number of consumers were demanding the use of supplements in conjunction with traditional medical treatments, despite strong opposition. "Medicine has become a significant business," he said, "and there are a lot of people who invest a lot of money into drug development who are not going to look at these things (glyconutrients) in a friendly manner."

Dr. Carson is among a growing legion of high profile medical professionals in this country and around the world who have embraced glyconutritionals. Many of them have had personal experiences with the nutrients or have seen what they have described as "miraculous" changes in their patients who have used them.

There were nights when Dr. Alex Omelchuk, a noted Canadian physician and scientist, wished that he were dead. The victim of a massive aneurysm in 1987, the pains in his head were so intense that there were times when he thought that his head was about to explode. Nightly, for nearly twelve years, he had to take hydrocodene to sleep comfortably.

"Only ten percent of the people survive the stroke that I experienced," said Dr. Omelchuk, the former chief of staff at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Edmonton, Canada. "I was one of the lucky ones."

After recovering from a ten-hour surgery, Dr. Omelchuk was not able to walk or talk. He was unable to teach or practice medicine and his brain capacity was reduced by 30 percent. "I was told by my physicians that I should accept my condition and that I would have to be on pain medication for the rest of my life."

Saddled with a quality of life as dismal as a bad cold on an endless winter night, Dr. Omelchuk often sat in his living room chair thinking of those days when he presided over meetings as president of the Alberta chapter of the College of Family Physicians of Canada. "My constant companions were my wife, Orissa, and my pain," said Dr. Omelchuk. "I tried massage, acupuncture, every type of pain pill that I could get a doctor to give me and, in the end, nothing seemed to work. I was hopeless. I was alive but my quality of life was poor," said Dr. Omelchuk, who was listed in the International Who's Who of Medicine the same year that he had the aneurysm.

Dr. Omelchuk was introduced to glyconutrients during a conversation with a colleague who noticed that he was always fatigued and suggested that they might help him. "I was skeptical," he said. "None of the best physicians in the country were able to help me. I had been told to accept my fate. Yet, we were desperate so I read everything that I could find about glyconutrients. My wife suggested that we try them."

Dr. Omelchuk said that four months after he began taking glyconutrients the crippling pain disappeared. "For the first time in twelve years I was able to sleep without waking up in the middle of the night," he said. "My thinking was clear and I did not have to take any medication."

His recovery did not make sense to him. It contravened what his doctors had told him, his own medical training, and everything that he had learned and experienced in the more than quarter of a century that he had been a physician.

"I read a paper that was written by scientists at the University of Calgary in 1998 that showed brain cell regeneration in laboratory rats. I began to look at other studies. There is research that suggests that stem cells that migrate to the brain undergo a transformation that result in functional brain cells. The brain has a capacity to set up new pathways of communication," he said.

Dr. Omelchuk believes that there is a direct relationship between the regeneration of his brain cells and the glyconutritionals that he used. "Medical researchers told me after my stroke that I had lost thirty percent of my brain capacity," he said. "I had myself tested after I had been talking the supplements and was told that all of my mental faculties were normal. My verbal capacity is in the 97th percentile. I have my life back! Glyconutritionals are responsible for my recovery and for the quality of life that I am able to share with my wife today."

Neither his medical training nor his medical teaching or practice was complemented with education in nutrition, Dr. Omelchuk said. "Some members of the medical community are admitting on a daily basis that our food chain is depleted and that the only way that we are going to get the essential nutrients that our bodies need is through supplementation," he said.

"Glyconutritionals could be one of the greatest nutritional discoveries of the 20th century," he said. "Unfortunately, physicians and many others in the field of health care know very little or nothing about them, even though there is abundant peer-reviewed scientific validation as to their efficacy in supporting the body's normal functions of recovery from chronic diseased conditions."

Hearing about the support of glyconutrients from such noted physicians as Dr. Carson and Dr. Omelchuk has elated Dr. McDaniel, a former of chief of staff at the Dallas Forth Worth Medical Center. "Over the years I have been astounded with the improvements in the health conditions of people, especially children, who have taken glyconutrients," said Dr. Reg McDaniel, who also serves as the medical director of the Fisher Institute for Medical Research in Grand Prairie, Texas. "I have seen quality of life improvements in people with diabetes, HIV-AIDS, heart disease, asthma, autism, allergies, Downs Syndrome and a number of other conditions. Many of these people saw little or no improvement through the use of their prescription drugs."

McDaniel said that during the last twenty years there have been amazing discoveries in glyconutritional research. "One study showed that people who added glyconutrients to their diets developed stems cells from their own bone marrow that resulted in the migration of the cells into damaged organs. Medical scientists concluded that these new cells replaced damaged or diseased ones."

McDaniel, a founder of the newly organized WMS international research foundation, said that he and other scientists will expand the testing of glyconutrients globally in an effort to add to the science behind the technology of glyconutritionals. "We intend to record and document responses to glyconutrients that will assist visionary members of the scientific and medical communities in their efforts to make this crucial technology available to all people," said Dr. McDaniel.

Voted physician of the year by his peers in 1990, Dr. McDaniel understands the skepticism of the medical community to complementary approaches to medicines.
"Most of us never received any nutritional training in medical school and that is compounded by the fact that many nutritional products have little or no science to support their claims. But glyconutrient research is quickly raising the bar of credibility."

As a recognized scientific authority on the potential of glyconutrients, Dr. McDaniel was invited to testify at the Congressional Hearing on Bio-Terrorism on Capitol Hill in 2001. "There is overwhelming evidence that suggests that the human body may be capable, through its normal physiology, of healing itself from almost any malady," Dr. McDaniel said. "I have been in medicine for more than 40 years and I have never been as optimistic as I am today that we will meet the needs of tens of millions of people who lead desperate lives due to chronic illnesses."

Crazy Busy

It has been a full week in several senses since I last blogged. My days are now filled with appointments with doctors, dentists, chiropracters and insurance adjusters. But I do not complain! All the activity is the result of having a family that is alive, rather than having to endure unnatural quiet because they have gone.

I have plenty of things I could blog about, but alas, the time to blog them is hard to find.

I will try and do better. Next week.

Extraordinary Mercies

In recent days our family has been the recipient of extraordinary mercies. As many of you know, we came very close to losing four of our six daughters and our grand-daughter in a horrific motor vehicle accident. Poor visibility from sleet and snow caused my daughter, Trista, to misjudge the distance and speed of an oncoming B train (18 wheeled transport truck with a trailer) and she pulled out in front of him on the highway. The truck hit them a total of three times, crushing the back end of the vehicle the first time, spinning them around where he hit the passenger side dead on, and then spinning them to strike the back side which launched them in the air to a flip to land 300 feet out in a field at the side of the road. They missed hitting a telephone pole by inches in the process.

When things like this happen, the typical reaction is to ask "why?" The universal opinion of those who viewed the wreck is that no one could have survived. I thought that myself when I saw the vehicle on my way into the hospital. Many people have lost members of their family in similar or lesser accidents. But we lost not a one. The extent of their injuries is minor: Keiannah, our two year old granddaughter, has a broken tibia and fibula on her right leg that is now adorned with a "pretty" purple cast. Hannah got a bump over one eye and a sore neck, Bethany has a sore neck, Trista got a minor concussion, and Tamara was knocked out and aspirated blood, but is now home and recuperating. We have much to be thankful for.

I cannot resist asking the question "why?" myself. Why were we the recipients of so much mercy when others aren't? Why is God so good to me and mine? I am at a lost to explain this.

Things that I am thankful for:

1. The entire accident was witnessed by an ambulance team who were returning to base. They were right there right away as soon as the car landed. Am I to believe that this wasn't by Divine appointment? I was able to overhear the conversation between one of the members of the Advanced Life Support (ALS) team, unaware by him as to who I was, with the pediatrician who was caring for Tamara. He came in to ask for feedback as to how it could have been handled better. I was impressed by the fact that he would take the time to do this to improve his skills for the future. I was also thankful to be able to shake his hand and thank him for his work.

2. The competence and compassion of the entire hospital staff who treated us with extreme kindness and consideration.

3. The outpouring of love and practical aid demonstrated to us by the Body of Christ, neighbors, friends, and acquaintances. My children informed me that the phone rang off the hook at home with people wanting to know how the girls were and if there was anything they could do to help. Special thanks go to those ladies who provided meals for my family at this time while I was in the hospital staying with Tamara.

4. Say what you like about socialized medicine and free market economies. If this accident had happened in the US, it would have wiped us out financially. Instead, it cost us relatively little.

5. That I don't have to pass the spot of the accident and think that "This is where my children died." Instead, I get to see the spot where the Lord's mercy was greatly extended to them. I think I shall build a monument like the children of Israel did at the side of the Jordan as a reminder of God's goodness. Through out the whole time, the Lord enabled me to keep my composure and allowed me to be a help to the children, rather than be one who needed help.

When times are easy and things are going well, it is easy to remember that "all things work together for good, for those who are the called. (Romans 8:28). It can be harder to say it when things go wrong or look dark. Yet it is in the darkness that we really are brought to ask ourselves if this is really true. Do we really believe that even this circumstance is for our good? By God's great grace and mercy, I can say "yes". His mercies are new every morning, the lines have fallen to us in pleasant places, and in this He works for our good and His greater glory. All praise and thanks belong to Him!

I would ask continued prayer for our family at this time, as the Lord brings us to your mind. Please pray for Tamara as she continues to recover. She had a serious concussion and though she is now at home, she still has the remainder of the crud in her lungs, from aspirating blood, to get cleared up. She still has headaches and fatigues very easily. It is somewhat disconcerting to see her so quiet when she is usually such a twitchy, active little thing.

Please remember Trista as well. She was the driver of the car and the thought that she was responsible for almost killing her daughter, her sisters, and herself has been weighing heavily upon her. May this be one of the means of grace that the Lord uses to draw her even closer to Himself. I have been encouraged to see how this has been working grace in her and pray that this work may continue.

Lastly, I would ask that this incident would be profitably used to remind us all of the brevity of life and the necessity of serving the Lord as we are enabled. Life is as the flower of the grass which springs up one day and is withered the next. None of us knows how long a time we have here upon earth. May the Lord enable us to stand firm and faithfully for the things that are of eternal significance while there is yet time.

Gerbils Again

I think we must have gotten some modern Industrial Strength Gerbils. When I was a young lass, my parents bought me a set of gerbils and one of the first Habitrail gerbil cages that were produced. They were cool cages that you could add all kinds of attachements on to so the gerbils could run through them and keep entertained. This cage kept all the gerbils, through successive generations, nicely contained.

Now, I don't know if the strength of the plastic on cages is now inferior, or if we have a new breed of genetically modified gerbils with the strength of ten inserted in their genes, but the girls' gerbils ate through their cage in not one, but FIVE different places.

I was out with all the children the other day and my husband found Suki puss crouched down outside the girls' bedroom door. He opened the door to find bands of marauding gerbils busily eating through electrical cords and other paraphanalia. He quickly scooped up a disappointed cat and incarcerated her in the bathroom and then quickly turned to meet the onslaught of gerbils, who, he swears, came at him in waves.

It took a while, but with great skill and dexerity he managed to corral them all in a box. The girls came home and transferred them to a large, tall plastic bucket for the night because they had already made serious inroads on the box. Because the gerbils chewed through the small fan that they use for "white noise" while sleeping, Bethany moved the gerbils into the bathroom (which had been vacated by the cat by this time) so they wouldn't be disturbed by all the chewing and scratching, and in the process managed to become thoroughly bit. The resulting shriek sent me rocketing skyward like a startled pheasant and I erupted from my bedroom to see who was being murdered and why. A quick glance told all, and with infinite kindness and mercy, I told Bethany to stop bleeding on my carpet and threatened to skin all the gerbils with a blunt knife before feeding them to the cat.

The gerbils were settled for the night with a large board across the top to keep them contained. In the morning, we went about our duties and the gerbils were left in the bucket. Unfortunately for them, the bucket was soon sitting in a pool of glorious morning sunshine. While sunshine on our shoulders generally makes us humans happy, it had the unhappy effect of turning the bucket with the board on it into a sort of mini-gerbil sauna. My oldest son happened to go by the bucket and decided to check on the gerbils, since they were unnaturally silent, and found them all laying on their sides, wet with sweat. The insides of the bucket were coated in condensation and the aroma of wood chips rose to meet his nostrils. However, the health benefits of sauna seemed to do them good once they got a bit of fresh air and they were up and at it very shortly afterwards, trying to eat and scratch their way out of the bucket with renewed vigor.

My husband is far more understanding and patient than I am when it comes to gerbils turning my house into a giant litter box. However he has to live with me. Next evening he comes home with a spacious GLASS aquarium for the gerbils. Sadly, the children wouldn't let me fill it with water before putting the gerbils in; but you can't have everything.

The gerbils are now installed in their new digs and are busily engaged in trying to find a purchase on the glass for gnawing or else in digging their way through. Me? I make faces at them through it.

Historical Perspectives

I love reading history, especially through biographies. When I read about the personalities involved in a particular era of history, I find it much easier to remember what actually happened than if I tried to recall a list of dates and events. Right now I am reading a biography of James I of England and VI of Scotland, called James I: The Fool as King by Otto Scott He does a very nice job in setting the stage for the conflict between Church and State that resulted in the need for the Solemn League and Covenant and the writing of the Westminster Confession of Faith which directly attacked and undermined James' doctrine of Divine Right of Kings.

Otto Scott does something in this book which is refreshing to me -- he destroys the mystique around Mary, Queen of Scots, and Elizabeth I of England. Instead of being figures of romance, Mary is presented as a foolish, conniving adulterous and murderous woman who was responsible for the death of her first husband. Elizabeth is portrayed as a vain, vaccillating pragmatist whose glory came, not from her wisdom, but depended more on the happy Providences of God which she was quick to claim the honor for.

After the Second Reformation in Scotland, the land fell back into unfaithfulness to her Covenants and so the judgement of God fell upon that land in the form of Jacobite rebellions and the clearing of the Highlands among other things. The hand of the Lord has been heavy on Scotland since that time, but like James Renwick, I believe that the Covenants will again be the means of blessing Scotland again.

I not only like to read history, but I also enjoy watching it. In the last few weeks there has been a very interesting history of the Medici family on PBS. The Medici's were from Florence, Italy, and some of them became famous as corrupt Popes. It was the Medici popes who were in power when Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door in Wittenburg and it was the Medici's who were the sponsors of artists like Michelangelo. Another infamous family member was Catherine de Medici, who was mother to kings of France, and one of the architects of the slaughter of French Reformed Christians during the St. Bartholomew's day massacre.

" For 20 years, Catherine[aka "Madame Serpent" -- CG] is the pawn of powerful men. Daughter of a playboy who dies of syphilis, she is orphaned at birth and raised by illegitimate cousins and papal uncles. She is threatened during the siege of Florence, and finally handed to her new husband, the future King of France.

Humiliated by her husband's older mistress, Diane, and despised as an Italian “shopkeeper’s daughter“, Catherine spends a decade trying to conceive. In desperation, she ends up having to ask her husband's mistress for help - and finally gives birth to 10 children, including four sons.

When her husband is killed in a hunting accident, Catherine takes control and rules France by proxy through her sickly, deranged and deviant sons. But she can't control the religious tensions sweeping the country, and starts the blackest event of French history - the St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre of 1572.

Obsessed with the prophecies of Nostradamus, whom she pursues around France, Catherine is told that no heir of her sons will rule France. The idea terrifies her.

A true godfather, Catherine rules her court through the whispers of her “flying squadron“ - ladies who use their bodies to get information. She’s certainly not afraid to get her hands dirty. "


For amusement, I took the Medici quiz they offered to see which of the Medici's I most resembled. I am...

LORENZO THE MAGNIFICENT -


It must be tough to be you: good at sports, ladies desire you, guys want to be you, - you're smart as a whip with the Midas touch. You live a charmed life. Everyone around you benefits from your largesse, friends and family alike share in your good fortune. You never back away from a just fight and stand up for what's right every time. We want to hate you but can't, you're Lorenzo the Magnificent.

Heh heh...

If I had no family responsibilities and could devote myself solely to being a professional student, one of the subjects I would immerse myself in would be history.