Once a week Joseph and I have fun at PEKiP and aftewards I drink coffee with the other moms. It always amazes me how much this refreshes my soul. Somehow during the morning I am assured of the importance of the work I am doing and for a few hours I am with people to whom I don't have to explain myself. We all have different ideas of how to raise kids, but we respect and learn from each other and we're all going through similar trials. I've always thought having friends young and old from different walks of life was more important than having lots of peers, but there is something to be said to having friends who are living what you're living.
Iwonder when we'll start doing this at PEKiP?
That is so true! You well know how much I deplore our society's tendency to splinter and segregate, especially by age. Most people (especially children) spend much too much of their time with their peers. But that doesn't negate the importance (and bliss!) of knowing people who are "living what you're living." The Internet has helped greatly -- years ago homeschoolers were few and far between, and there were, as far as I could tell, exactly none around here whose approach was remotely similar to ours. Even though Internet communication was very limited in those days, it did put me in touch with others of similar philosophy. Not at all the same as real flesh-and-blood friends, but it filled an otherwise impossible hole.
My early days as a mother were greatly enhanced by the fact that many of our friends were having children at the same time. It's a mistake to rely solely on one's peers for childrearing wisdom, as you get a very limited view -- but oh, how wonderful it is to have them! Especially when so much of the world is saying you're crazy, stupid, or both for the choices you've made.
