My Shot in the Arm

Last summer, my friends Alexis and Kristina asked me to join them at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Homeschool Conference.  I went, loved it, and couldn't wait to go back this year...this time without my toddler in tow!  There are always inspiring speakers, those men and women who fill me with that reassurance that I CAN do this crazy Catholic-homeschooling-mom deal for another year.  And there's always the gigantic hall filled with beautiful books from what seems like every major Catholic homeschooling curriculum provider or book publisher.  My eyes were bloodshot and blurry by the time I left that hall!  (I was particularly relieved that my homeschooling plans were pretty much in place before the conference so that I was not as tempted by all the shiny, shrink-wrapped curricula!)

I take notes during all the lectures, but thought that it would be nice to have a digital place to return to when I need to access some of my favorite thoughts or quotes or discoveries from the talks.  I thought I'd just put them here, in case the words offer help or comfort or a laugh to those friends of mine who couldn't attend!

Lectio Divina: Kindling the Fire at the Heart of Our Interior Life by Fr. Stephen McGraw

- The format for Lectio Divina parallels the biblical quote, "Seek and you shall find.  Knock and it will be opened to you."  The "seeking" is the reading of the Scripture.  The "finding" is the meditation portion.  Then you "knock" during the prayer time, and if you are lucky, the door will be "opened" to you during contemplation. 

- "The devil knows he has lost a soul that perseveres in mental prayer."

The Academic Approach for All Ages by Ginny Seuffert

- "You can not teach a brat anything!"

- "If I am going to be fat and lonely, darn it, they are going to LEARN!" (Referring to the fact that if she has spent her whole life sacrificing her time at the gym and her outings with friends, than she's going to make sure her kids reap the benefits of her sacrifice!  I thought this was a funny, but really true way of looking at homeschooling!)

- "Homeschooling IS your service to Christ."

The Basic Brick for Building a Civilization by David Ahlquist  

- "Every bad philosophy is self destructive." 

- "The family is the only kingdom founded on love that creates its own citizens."

- "We can get really prideful that we don't commit sins that we aren't tempted to commit."

- "Work, education, and recreation should not all occur outside the home."

How to See the Truth in Great Literature by Joseph Pearce

- "God gives us our gifts to use or abuse freely."

- "Be true to the true beyond yourself." (The anti-"To thine own self be true.")

Leaving the Nest by Joseph Pearce

- "We get to Heaven  by getting others to Heaven."

- "The most important thing about any education is that at the end, you are oriented in the right direction for the rest of your life---TOWARDS God."

- "Being clever is not the same as being wise." 

- "The future belongs to those who have children.  The Culture of Death doesn't have children."