I am grateful to have had the opportunity to teach so many wonderful, kind and talented students in my homeschool enrichment classes. Each student was a gift.  Many of them were eager participants in the classes.  Others were excellent listeners and observers.  Nearly all of them were always willing to help with setting up the classroom, or cleaning up at the end of class, or doing almost any task I asked them to do.  Each one touched my heart, and taught me many important lessons.  I am so fortunate to know each of those extraordinary students.

The families of these students were also extraordinary.  Knowing these families has enriched my life beyond measure.  They were not only willing to assist in my classes, but also, to help me, personally, when I faced challenges.  They paid bills when I couldn’t.  They brought groceries for my family.  They cared for my daughters when I had obligations that didn’t allow me to bring my daughters with me.  They were the best friends anyone could ever have.  I have been so richly blessed.

I loved making presentations at homeschool events, business events and church events.  On each occasion, I made new friends, and enjoyed great times with old friends.  Attendees shared their personal experiences, their problems, their ideas and helpful resources.  I was able to use all that they shared with me to help others enrich their family learning experiences.  I am grateful for all those opportunities.

Writing my monthly learning newsletter, and compiling all the resources and family events for the newsletter was such a joy.  My readers constantly provided me with positive feedback and encouraged others to subscribe.  They made my newsletter successful!

When I didn’t have money for vacations, the homeschool community provided low-cost opportunities to get away.  Our semi-annual getaways to Buckett Hill/Grand Haven resorts were the most fun, exciting, crazy, fulfilling vacations we could ever have hoped to enjoy. Conversation, campfires, water polo, hikes, picnics, dancing, singing – you name it, we did it.   The Unschoolers Waterpark Gathering at Kalahari resort in Sandusky, was an annual event that provided fun, opportunities to meet people from across the country, and beyond.

I’ve always loved being able to consult families who are unsure of how to homeschool, or who need help with special learning challenges, or who are feeling overwhelmed by choices, curricula or any other learning related problem.  I liked being able to put parents’ minds at ease, and giving them ideas for solutions.  I met so many amazing parents, children and teens through these consultations.

Workshops for parents and workshops for teens were always fun.  My goal was to have everyone leave the workshop in a better, happier, more enthusiastic frame of mind than when they arrived.  It was so gratifying to see faces light up as they applied ideas to the problems they were facing.  They could see light at the end of the tunnel.   That was the greatest reward.

I am grateful for the creative and fun ideas that seemed to always appear, just when I needed them most.  There were many times, I couldn’t figure out how I would convey the lesson for a particular class.  I would stay up half the night trying to find the best approach, and finally go to sleep without having come up with a good idea.  In the morning, I would worry all the way to class, and when I got there, suddenly an idea would pop into my head, and it would turn out to be the perfect solution.  I am grateful for inspiration.

I am grateful for all the wonderful books I read to prepare for literature classes and book discussion groups.  There are so many wonderful books that I will never forget.  There were books that made us think, laugh, cry, scream, left us speechless or made us shrink back in disbelief.  They touched our hearts and enriched our lives.

I loved attending the many social events that homeschoolers have: achievement night, bonfires, formal proms, casual dances, plays, lectures, Shakespeare in the park, Showtime at High Noon, park programs, library programs, concerts, parties…  the list is almost endless.   And I enjoyed every single one of the events I attended.  In fact, I was usually very sad when it was time to go home.

My life was greatly enriched by the hundreds of homeschoolers I have known, and I am so very grateful!