Book #19

A few weeks back I was suffering from a painful sore throat and couldn't do my normal reading aloud, so I downloaded an audio book--Palace of Stone.  It's the second Princess Academy book by Shannon Hale.  Years ago I read the kids the first book and we were all excited to learn there was a second in the series. 

The story tells of a group of girls from Mt. Eskel who come to Aslan (the home of the King and Queen) because their friend is marrying the prince.  Unfortunately there is unrest in Aslan.  There is a bit of a revolution happening.  The poor are not pleased with how they are treated.  And there is an issue with a commoner marrying the prince.  The Mt. Eskel girls get caught in the middle and do their best to make things peaceful. 

We enjoyed the audio presentation.  There were different voices and the songs were sung.  Shannon Hale has many fun books.

Book #18

Last Summer I took a series of parenting classes.  One was about simplifying.  The book Simplicity Parenting by Kim John Payne was recommended.  I went to my library and reserved it.  I was on a long waiting list and finally got it.  Dr. Payne believes that the behaviors we see in kids are caused by the complexity of the lives they live in.  He had a lot of great ideas about simplifying and I felt affirmed that I was doing many of them.  I also learned some more things that I can apply. 

Dr. Payne begins with a chapter called Soul Fever in which he shares the symptoms of an overwhelmed child.  Then he moves on to other chapters where he gives solutions.  He talks about reducing the amounts of toys and books and organizing what is left.  Here is an area that I think I've done well in.  The kids don't have a lot of toys and what they do have is kept in boxes high in the closet and they need to ask to get them down.  Clothes are also mentioned.  Today as we put away our winter clothes and pulled our our summer clothes, I tried to implement some of the author's ideas. 

Another area Dr. Payne says we need to simplify is the rhythm of our daily lives.  Is it predictable and consistent?  He even talks about simplifying food and dinner time.  He emphasizes the importance of routines.  He also has a section called the Gift of Boredom.  Free time has been an important part of our life for awhile.  I read somewhere that free time is when real learning occurs.  The kids' free time is the same time as my study time.  Yes, they still come to me and say they are bored, but I let them figure out how to fill that time on their own. 

Dr. Payne's next idea is filtering out the adult world.  We can do this with less screen time, by the way we parent (being present but not hovering), avoiding adult topics, and by talking less.  I love the idea of talking less. "The more you talk, the less you are listening."  We've also been big on minimal screen time.  I start seeing bad behavior when the kids get extra amounts of screen time. 

I wouldn't have picked this book up on my own, I feel like I've simplified my life without being told how to do it, but I was grateful for the additional ideas. 

Book #17

My couple's book club selected The Walking Drum by Louis L'Amour as our March book.  I don't know if I mentioned this before, but the book club is actually a Gathering Project--a TJEd book club where we "gather" other parents and teach them about leadership principles through the books we read and discuss.  We've read a lot of great books and have had interesting discussions about leadership. 
As I read this book I was reminded how much I dislike Louis L'Amour's writing style.  It is choppy and doesn't flow.  But, I enjoy the stories and the messages.  The Walking Drum is about a young man, Mathurin Kerbouchard, who sets out to rescue his father.  It takes place in Europe during the 12th century and contains a lot of history.  Kerbouchard has many adventures and is able to solve problems because of his education. 

I am a lazy reader.  I often read just to read and forget that I should be thinking and writing as I read.  Sometimes I will underline and take notes and summarize, but mostly I read and enjoy.  This, unfortunately, means that I don't get as much from the book as I should.  I realized this at the book discussion.  There were 3 of us there, and only 1 person took notes and had stuff to share.  I wished that I had written down my favorite parts and thoughts so that our discussion could have been better.  I also wish that I knew how to identify themes and principles and could express my thoughts better.  That is part of the reason of this blog, though, to help me with writing. . . 

Book #16

The Saturdays by Elizabeth Enright is a cute book about 4 siblings who are tired of wasting their Saturdays.  They form a club (the Independent Saturday Afternoon Adventure Club), pool their allowance and each take a Saturday to do whatever they want.  One goes to an art show, another goes to the opera, the third gets her hair cut and styled and the fourth goes to the circus.  After a couple of outings on their own they decided to find things to do together.  I enjoyed the book because of their adventures, but also because of their relationships.  I love books that show that brothers and sisters can get along. 

Book #15

We listen to a lot of audio books in the car while driving.  One series that we started listening to last year was the John Carter of Mars series by Edgar Rice Burroughs.  We just finished the 5th book--The Chessmen of Mars.  In this story John Carters daughter, Tara, gets lost in a storm, then kidnapped, then escapes only to get caught again, then finally rescued. 

It had a slow start, but when we started meeting more characters it got interesting.  There were creatures that were only heads, but would attach themselves to bodies.  They believed that the mind was more powerful than the body.  Then we met another race of martians who played Jatan (I'm not sure if that is spelled right--when I listen, I have to guess at a lot).  Jatan is a little like chess, but these martians played it live and to the death.  We learned about love along side Tara.  And we learned about courage and chivalry. 

I've enjoyed the books.  One one hand I'm glad that we listen to it because I wouldn't be able to pronounce the names, on the other had I wish it was a different reader. 

Book #14

Our homeschool group book club has 2 choices for books--one a little easier and one a little harder.  It is my responsibility to lead the discussion for the harder book, so I always choose to read that book aloud.  If there is time we will read the easier book, too, or I will give that to the kids to read on their own.  This month I did things a little backward.  King of the Wind: The Story of the Godolphin Arabian was the easier book for March, but I read it first.  Now I hope we have time to finish the harder book. 

The book is a story about a young slave, Agba, who is a horse boy for the Sultan in Morocco.  He sees a horse, Sham, born and has great hopes for him (a lot of it based on superstition).  He takes care of the horse and goes with it to France when the horse and 5 others are chosen to be a gift for the king.  Unfortunately the king doesn't want the horses and that starts Agba and Sham on many adventures.  The twist to the story is that Agba can't speak, so he is never able to speak up for himself or his horse.  I wondered how different the story would have been if he could talk.  Although there were many trials, Agba never left Sham's side, and in the end Agba saw Sham fulfill his destiny.  

Book #13

What is Leadership?  According to Chris Brady and Orrin Woodward, the authors of Launching a Leadership Revolution, leadership is “the influence of others in a productive, vision-driven direction and is done through the example, conviction, and character of the leader.”  They believe that a leader empowers, helps others to fix problems and serves others.  The book is educational.  It teaches the reader how to master the skills needed to become a true leader. 

I follow the homeschooling philosophy found in A Thomas Jefferson Education called Leadership Education.  When I try to explain to people what the philosophy is or how we teach and learn in our home, I struggle to make it come out right.  I say that it builds leaders, that it teaches how to think instead of what to think, that it uses classics instead of text books and brings us face to face with great people from history.  I get a few confused looks, but people will mostly let me do what I want to do.  Even though I have faith in the philosophy and am following the keys, I question my understanding of how to train a leader.   I also wonder if I am capable of being a true leader.  This book, though, has given me additional insight on what a leader is and does and aligns with what I already know. and believe.

Mr.’s Brady and Woodward teach that there are steps to becoming a leader and even certain skills that must be learned before one can climb those steps.  A person must be hungry (be motivated), be hone-able (teachable and changeable) and be honorable. 

They then introduce the Cycle of Achievement—the importance of having a vision, setting goals, making a game plan, working to achieve goals and seeking counsel.  This is kind of like having a mission, then making goals to fulfill that mission and using a mentor to help and guide. 

After learning these foundational qualities, a leader is ready to climb the steps.  The authors introduce 5 levels of influence(the steps to becoming a leader)—learning, performing, leading, developing leaders, and developing developers of leaders.  They say that a leader never leaves the skills of the previous step as they move to the next--"a leader picks up new abilities while accumulating and expanding his or her influence."  I love the idea that a leader should always be learning and that a job of a leader is to train more leaders. 

I have many areas where I am a leader (some by choice and some by calling), and I am at different steps in each area.   As I read I saw areas where I could improve and become a better leader.  For example, I am a reader and am constantly learning, but I think an area where I need work is performing.  I want the things I learn to lead to action.  "Proper thinking is the foundation of proper actions, and proper actions are what give birth to performance."  The book is filled with historical examples of leaders who went through the steps. 

 

A leader's visions outlive them.  They do things that change the world.  I've learned that the best way to change the world is start with yourself.  Then help those around you change.  I am changing the world--one person at a time.