Recently, my kids have been asking me to take them to less homeschool programs. You see, last year, when I started homeschooling, I signed up for any and every homeschool program, eager to give my kids the chance to socialize and get them out of the house. What I soon realized though, was that my kids were getting burnt out. They were stressed that they didn’t have enough time at home to finish their schoolwork, because we were out of the house so much. Thinking it would get better with time, I powered through the rest of the school year, pushing my kids to attend as many programs as I could sign them up for.
This year, they made me promise to scale back, which I did, but not without a healthy dose of mom-guilt that I wasn’t doing enough.
But as it turns out, the answer to my guilt-ridden conscience was in one of the many live theater shows we attended this year (though I wanted to attend 10, I picked my top 5 to accommodate my children’s requests.)
Luckily, one of the ones I picked, Westward, Go!, was put on by one of my favorite groups, StoryMakers about all the people in history who’ve become famous by going west – from Lewis and Clarke, the settlers the Oregon Trail, the members of the Gold Rush, and even Johnny Appleseed. The same group had put on an awesome show last year about cultural heritage. What made this show different though, was the absence of almost all props. There was almost nothing on stage, save for the actors, who, playing a few different characters throughout the show, only changed a few accessories each time they slipped into their new character.
What was so amazing was how these actors kept all of us riveted throughout the show despite this. We’ve attended many shows, some good and some bad, and though some had lots of expensive technical features, it was this one, with 5 actors and not a prop between them, that stood head and shoulders above the rest. For every scene, their acting was so superb, we could see the props on stage without them even being there. Our imagination did the work for us without us even realizing it. When the cast crowded in a boat down a river, their gestures and postures were such that we could see the boat and feel the waves. When the same boat careened down a waterfall, we could sense their terror. When they sat around a fire, we could feel the warmth. It was truly impressive and though my kids don’t love homeschool programs all the times, they all enjoyed this one, rating it a 10 out of 10 on the drive home.
So what lesson did I learn? Less is more. When that less is truly worthwhile. Our homeschooling journey is far from perfect, but it doesn’t need all that extra stuff. So with that in mind, I solemnly swear to only sign up for the programs that I think will be truly exceptional. And if it isn’t? Well, that’s a lesson for another blog post. 🙂