Class of 2009

My grad party was today! Yay! I wish more people would have shown up, but oh well. One of my good friends graduated from home school the first of May, and her parents did this little ceremony where they talked about homeschooling. That's what we did; below is a copy of my 'speech.'

I’ve been homeschooled my entire life. My mom gave up her job to be a stay at home mom to Rhyan, then when she was old enough, a teacher. Then I came along, and she homeschooled both of us, which wasn’t easy. A lot of people criticized my parents for choosing to home school us; they thought that they were trying to isolate us from the world. But those weren’t the reasons; mom and Dad continued on despite the criticism, despite the sometimes hurtful remarks because they wanted the best education possible for us. God had called them to home school; if you’re not called to do it, then more than likely you won’t succeed. I’d be lying if I said that this road was easy, because oftentimes, it was very difficult. It can’t be taken lightly; because you must be determined, diligent, persistent, patient, willing, and committed. My parents were all that and more. They knew that people might look down on us because we were homeschooled. People didn’t always approve of that decision, but it wasn’t their decision to make.

My parents taught us the usual subjects: math, reading, science and the like, but more importantly, they taught us how to live Godly lives, not only through their words, but also through their actions every day. They taught us to not let others dictate who you are or how to make your decisions. You should make decisions the way that God leads you to make them. They raised both of us to be God-fearing, Christ-following young women, and though I often slip up and make mistakes, I have a good solid foundation, built upon by my parents. I also have a close relationship with my parents and sister, and I attribute that to homeschooling. It gave us the chance to be a family, especially because of my dad’s job, which would take him out of the house for a long time certain days and weeks. I loved being homeschooled; I loved the flexibility we had as a family and as a class. I’m leaving one part of my life and moving onto the next that will be more challenging, exciting, and sometimes scary. But I will always remember how my parents sacrificed time, money and popularity to educate us with a Christian curriculum. I was asked several times if I wanted to transfer into public school and I said no each time. My mom and I would often talk after assignments were given, and those are precious memories. That is a big reason why homeschooling has been such a blessing to me and my family; the ability to get one-on-one attention and to be able to talk at the same time.

So a tremendous thank-you to my parents, who stuck with it and didn’t give up, even though I’m sure they felt like it. I wouldn’t be where I am or who I am without them.