If you have ever been at the birth of a baby, then you probably know a little bit of the feeling that we experienced while in Poland. Quite some time back, we knew that we would be speaking to a homeschool group in Poland, but we assumed it would be a very small and did not realize the significance of the coming event. As we got to the location and began speaking to the host, we realized the magnitude of the coming meeting as the homeschooling community is just now being "born" and are very excited about the possibilities that they have. We thought that this would just be a few people from the local town and that was it.
We were delighted and humbled to know that when people heard about these day long meetings through the internet, they decided to come from all over the country of Poland to attend. I spoke to a couple of ladies that had started at 4 a.m. from their community of Gdansk (the home of Lech Walensa) and caught a train to attend the sessions which started at 10:30 a.m.
The group was excited as they realized that there were others in the country of Poland that were also homeschooling. They don't have any curriculum in Polish or any aids at all, but they have a desire to make a difference in the lives of their children and their country.
The experience taught me a good lesson too--how can I think I have difficulties homeschooling when I have untold catalogs of books, cds, dvds, magazines and lots of conventions, associations and tutors available to me, and they have nothing? The birth of homeschooling in Poland is going well and was a joy to see.
We spent time in Germany, however, and the birth of hoomeschooling there is not near as easy or pleasant. We spent the night with the Dudek family in a little vilage in the middle of Germany. They have been sentenced by the courts to prison terms just for choosing to teach their own children. It doesn't matter that both parents are highly intelligent and loving parents. It doesn't matter that the father tutors German children after school hours for his own livelihood. The problem is that Germany wants no "parallel cultures" as the courts state it. Somehow this term sounds vaguely familiar after visiting World War II museums in Berlin. It seems like that era was supposed to have died long ago, but somehow it is still alive after all these years and after so much suffering to supposedly free them from that type of thinking. At any rate, we were humbled and appreciative of the courage of this family who has endured so much already just to do what they think God wants them to do.
Here are also some random pictures of our time in Poland.
Christian saw so many muslim people in London and western Europe that he thought he would
also fix his towel like them. By the way, over here, London is now called "Londonastan." It is humorous to hear him say, "Mom, there's a towel head."One of the many plaques around Warsaw where Hitler's soldiers went on a killing rampage.
The International Church in Poznan, Poland.
The homeschool organization of Poland.
"Old Town" Warsaw, Poland
Rick buying me a basket of strawberries in Poland
Sunshine at Aldi in the Netherlands
The cultural palace in Warsaw, Poland
Pope John Paul in Warsaw.
Royal and Christian with the executioner in Warsaw. This guy was dressed up and would do a little jig when someone dropped a coin in his bowl at his feet. People were surprised that neither Precious nor Christian was scared of him. They went right up to him and touched him. I should have known that he wouldn't be afraid of this guy after what he did to the mummies at St. Michans church in Dublin, Ireland, when the guide said he could touch the finger of one of the mummies that was about 800 years old. He was in the room with Rick and the kids and I was outside with Paul. Just let me say this...if mama had been in the room, he would not have done what he did,
but when dad is in charge, you just don't repeat what happens. Ask me when we get back--the internet is too public!
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