Things I'm Thinking About . . .

In A Charlotte Mason Companion: Personal Reflections on the Gentle Art of Learning, Karen Andreola suggest that each day a child should have:

    ~ something or someone to love

    ~ something to do

    ~ something to think about 

I agree with that! But now that I am no longer in the business of directing a child's learning through homeschooling, I also believe that those are good principles for anyone . . . throughout life! 

Here are a few of the things that I have been thinking about recently . . . 

💡THE MERLIN APP 

I suppose this is not so much "something to think about" as it is an aid to knowledge, but it certainly spawned some thinking this week. Mom, my sister Linda, Bekah, and I went to the cemetery to put a wreath on Daddy's grave for Father's Day. While we were there, we heard a bird chirping over and over and we weren't sure what kind of bird it was. I remembered that I had downloaded the Merlin app a few weeks ago after a few recommendations on Instagram, so I decided to give it a try. The app quickly identified the singer as a Northern Cardinal, a common bird in our area. I should have recognized  call, its but I didn't and I realize that I don't know many birds by their sounds. Over the next few minutes, Merlin also identified a Carolina Wren, a Brown-Headed Cowbird, a Chipping Sparrow, and a Great Crested Flycatcher. Their calls were not as loud as the cardinal's, but the app picked them up and we noticed the sound when it did. How much I have missed! Now I am inspired to listen more attentively and to learn to recognize the calls of the birds in my area. 

💡GIVING A CHILD SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT

Even though I no longer homeschool my own children, I find it fascinating to watch my grandchildren learn. I use the word "watch" because sometimes it seems exactly that . . . as if you can see that lightbulb turn on as something grabs their imagination and they start thinking about it. 

We have a weekly video call with our daughter Kati's family. (Rabbit trail here: I am so thankful that, as much as I love Little House on the Prairie, I do not live in a time before such things as video calls! I am grateful to see those grandbabies across the miles every week!) 

Back to my story. On a recent video call, Caleb (5) and Ellie (almost 4) were telling us about seeing a bear in the movie Balto. We proceeded to talk more about bears, including the fact that Ellie was a bit of a grumpy bear that day because she hadn't slept well the previous night. Then I remembered the poem about Fuzzy Wuzzy and recited it for the children. As soon as I began, Caleb stopped wiggling and gave me his full attention. (I was "watching" him learn right then.) 

A few minutes later, Caleb surprised us by saying the poem himself . . . after hearing it one time! Ellie was saying some of the lines too. So I have decided to read or recite a poem for them each week while interest lasts. This week's was "The Purple Cow" by Gelett Burgess. 

💡A QUOTE ABOUT REMEMBERING

My Bekah is an old soul. Of course, she has always been around people older than herself. Ron and I were ages 44 and 40 when she was born. She has three older siblings and the oldest is 20.5 years older than she. Also, Ron is the fifth of eight children, so her aunts and uncles are also older and she has grown up hearing about Social Security and retirement and colonoscopies and the like. On the flip side, she has always been around babies too since her first nephew was born when she was 20 months old and she now has fifteen nieces and nephews. All of that to say that Bekah has had exposure to a broader scope of thoughts and culture and ideas. 

Since Bekah started college, we have had many conversations about "common knowledge." It is surprising that many students have not read, watched, or even heard of books, movies, historical figures and events that we consider "common knowledge." We have discussed the fact that if you only know what has happened in your own lifetime, and if you are only familiar with modern thought, then you have missed a vast amount of knowledge! Are you truly educated? 

I came across this quote yesterday as I was reading Beyond Mere Motherhood: Moms Are People Too by Cindy Rollins. 

Remembering is one of the most important things we can do for our present and our future. Remembering is not looking back only, it is carrying those things past into the future for the preservation of culture.

I love that, and it gives me something to think about!

💡THIS VERSE

Our ladies' Sunday School class has committed to memorizing one Bible verse each month. I made a phone wallpaper for this month's verse so I see it (and think about it) multiple times a day.

Thanks for joining me on this meander through my random thoughts! I'd love to know what you have been thinking about! 

In an attempt to catch up on my Gathering the Moments posts, I just posted 
Gathering the Moments | March 2025
Gathering the Moments | April 2025 

I hope to "gather" May soon! We'll see . . . 🙃