tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post1793270066205829310..comments2023-12-31T01:32:28.935-06:00Comments on At A Hen's Pace: On Writing and Blogging and Home EducationAt A Hen's Pacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02244490539003130874noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-63523538449916171892010-11-17T21:38:05.551-06:002010-11-17T21:38:05.551-06:00Thanks for this post. I don't know if there...Thanks for this post. I don't know if there's a good answer other than the "one foot in front of the other" one. I can only get one thing done if I'm not getting other things done, so my best solution has been to switch my concentration from thing to thing . . . get the homeschooling plate spinning, then move onto the housekeeping one, spin that for awhile, then let that alone and spin the writing plate, then hopefully get back to the homeschooling one before it crashes to the floor . . . I get more efficient, I think, but there's a limit to efficiency and sometimes things crash. So then I start again. I haven't found any other way.<br /><br />If you ever do though, you have to blog about it. Time permitting. :DJessica Snellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17185831697537364088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-77045913450188176392010-11-17T20:16:02.178-06:002010-11-17T20:16:02.178-06:00thanks, i'll look it up :) Cheers xx
Christin...thanks, i'll look it up :) Cheers xx<br /><br />ChristinaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-41974554390125710582010-11-17T19:10:36.694-06:002010-11-17T19:10:36.694-06:00Debbie--
Thanks so much for your good words. I ap...Debbie--<br /><br />Thanks so much for your good words. I appreciate your last thoughts especially--that does off take the pressure!<br /><br />Christina--<br /><br />The name of the album is "A Kiltartan Road Christmas." Kiltartan Road is the name of the group, and it's an original song of theirs. I hope you're able to find it--it's one of our favorite Christmas albums, with a number of unusual Christmas songs.<br /><br />Crystal--<br /><br />I really appreciate your wisdom! You echo a lot of my own thoughts about my time, including the knowledge that eventually, I'll have more of it. (Although I'll probably have grandchildren before my youngest two are out of the house, and if they are close by--maybe not!)<br /><br />CO Mom--<br /><br />Yes, I read The Tipping Point, too...daunting to think about. (Wonder how many hours I've logged writing blog posts over the last 5 years? ;) But on the other hand, there is Winston Churchill, who took up painting later in life and said something along the lines, "Lessons are for the young--the rest of us must be bold." I should look it up and post the quote.<br /><br />Blessings, all!<br /><br />JeanneAt A Hen's Pacehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02244490539003130874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-19796504085333445312010-11-17T15:42:28.851-06:002010-11-17T15:42:28.851-06:00This post spoke to me. Sam's been talking abo...This post spoke to me. Sam's been talking about the book The Tipping Point, and the 10,000 hours it takes to get good at something. There are only so many hours.<br />You spend your hours well, Jeanne. Thanks for sharing.MomCO3https://www.blogger.com/profile/07231541513973893466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-11693853372571338192010-11-17T01:25:52.657-06:002010-11-17T01:25:52.657-06:00Linds wrote what I was thinking (that would explai...Linds wrote what I was thinking (that would explain why we are such good online friends!) but I want to add another thought. In the last 5 years it has come to me that God wants me to serve Him by serving my family. That is contrary to what the world wants me to believe - no big surprise that God's way is not the way of the world, is it?! But He gave me the role and joy of being a mother for a reason and I honour Him when I enjoy that role. And I have His model of parenting to follow - His always giving, always sacrificing, always waiting, always loving model. So my calling and my time are my gifts with which to serve Him. Our children have their own families now and the model we provided for them (mostly unknowingly!) is often discussed and praised by them. Thank heaven that someone so much bigger than us was (and is) in control of our hearts and our actions! There will come many a day when the hours will stretch out for you and you can fill them. Meanwhile, rest in His arms and in His plans. I can tell by reading that your children are amazing - what a blessing! Take care!Crystalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04273314911940422824noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-39242819244414292632010-11-17T00:22:52.503-06:002010-11-17T00:22:52.503-06:00hi :) sorry, this is unrelated, but i was searchin...hi :) sorry, this is unrelated, but i was searching the christmas song from the wind in the willows (a favourite book) and one of the first hits was a post you had written years back saying you had a version of it on a christmas folk music cd. you included a link, but it doesn't work anymore and i was wondering if you could tell me the name of that cd.<br />hope i don't sound like a creeper haha, i just really like that song and would love to have a copy of it to music. <br />Cheers and thanks very much xx<br /><br />ChristinaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-58314839911128395642010-11-15T11:17:15.832-06:002010-11-15T11:17:15.832-06:00Jeanne, I find myself asking similar questions. ...Jeanne, I find myself asking similar questions. While I don't have biological children, I do have spiritual ones to care for and often their needs seem to be far more important than my own interests in writing. I haven't found any answers yet, but it seems that when there's something burning in me, something I'm really passionate about, I find the time to write. I can't really rest until I put it on paper. Maybe you feel that way much more often than I do. Or maybe we need to be "practicing" more often even when the passion isn't there. I don't know, but I understand you and am here with you in the journey. Please let me know if you find some answers. There is one thing I'm sure of, though, God won't let us "miss" our calling, miss out on the thing He's created us to do. That comforts me and takes off the pressure.Debbiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10444351167915442536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-91399089559254839182010-11-13T23:06:12.262-06:002010-11-13T23:06:12.262-06:00Jen and Linds,
Thanks so much for your thoughts, ...Jen and Linds,<br /><br />Thanks so much for your thoughts, both so encouraging. Linds, I especially appreciate your wisdom and the perspective you have, looking back. (And that you still visit me--thank you!) Your comment "It is not what I do, but who I am that matters," is almost exactly a word God gave to me many years ago--I still have the Post-It I jotted it down on then. I'm considering carefully your other words as well.<br /><br />Thank you both for your friendship!<br /><br />JeanneAt A Hen's Pacehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02244490539003130874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-76682328544187339512010-11-13T17:40:55.019-06:002010-11-13T17:40:55.019-06:00The older I get, the clearer things seem to be, an...The older I get, the clearer things seem to be, and the one thing I wish I had focussed on more back then when I was on the whirling roundabout of kids and life is NOW. The present. Not yesterday or tomorrow. Just now. Taking each day as the perfect gift it is, and using the time wisely, trusting that God will give me the wisdom to make good choices. <br />Those choices have to include time for yourself too, without guilt. You see, Jeanne, you were created as a unique individual, and while the most important thing you may ever do is to raise your children to beautiful young adults, you are also called to be the person God created for a specific purpose. Which means investing time in your own talents, even if it is just for a short time. <br />It is not what I do, but who I am that matters. And sometimes the busyness can obscure who we are. Or be used as a screen to hide behind. Am I making any sense at all? Hmmm. Your dreams are signposts to who you are. So trust, choose one, and follow where it (God) takes you. I will be here watching with a grin.....Lindshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17141761866483224572noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20381399.post-7086891930152008422010-11-13T13:11:49.342-06:002010-11-13T13:11:49.342-06:00A hasty reply from Aidan's basketball game : )...A hasty reply from Aidan's basketball game : ). I resonate with your dilemmas and your balancing act, Jeanne, though we are not choosing the home-schooling element. There are many after school hours spent working with the children on projects and homework and re-teaching material that isn't coming easily. While I do not always find the perfect balance between gifts, calling and time, it is something I think a lot about. Lately, I have been touched deeply by a quote I read a year or so ago about the idea that no one knows who built cathedrals. Right now, my calling and my (most of the time) joy is to build into my children. There must be room for me, but there must also be value in the me that is Mom.Jennifer Merckhttp://jlkm.tumblr.comnoreply@blogger.com