Hamlet was sane. He was brilliant with his ability to use his interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligences. This indicates that he was extremely aware of himself and everyone around him, thus making him responsible for his actions. The following are quotes from the play that demonstrate Hamlet's use of these skills and prove his sanity.
Interpersonal Intelligence (discerning people for who they really are):
Hamlet - Then I would that you were so honest a man. (Act 2, Scene 2, line 177)
Hamlet - Do you think I am easier to be played on than a pipe? (Act 3, scene 2, line 341)
Hamlet - You go not till I set you up a glass where you may see the inmost part of you. (Act 3, scene 4, line 20)
Hamlet - He keeps them, like an ape, in the corner of his jaw, first mouthed to be last swallowed. When he needs what you have gleaned it is but squeezing you and, sponge, you shall be dry again. (Act 4, scene 2, line 17)
Intrapersonal Intelligence (internal reflection):
Hamlet - "Seems," madam? Nay it is. I know not "seems."(Act 1, Scene 2 line 76)
Hamlet - For there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so. (Act 2 scene 2, line 246)
Hamlet - What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason, how infinite in faculty! (Act 2, Scene 2, line 299)
Hamlet - To be, or not to be? That is the question (Act 3, scene 1, line 56)
Gertrude - O'er whom his very madness, like some ore among a mineral of metals base, shows itself pure. He weeps for what is done. (Act 4, scene 1, line 25)
Hamlet - What is a man if his chief good and market of his time be but to sleep and feed? A beast, no more. (Act 4, scene 4, line 32)
October 24, 2009
October's Title Swap
Tales of Shakespeare by Charles and Mary Lamb
Hamlet CD by BBC
Teach Your Own by John Holt
Your Money of Your Life by Joe Dominguez
History Pockets by Evan - Moor
Hamlet CD by BBC
Teach Your Own by John Holt
Your Money of Your Life by Joe Dominguez
History Pockets by Evan - Moor
September 21, 2009
September's Title Swap
Miss Potter - DVD
Printable Rescources - donnayoung.org
Debra Bells Ultimate Guide to Home Schooling
Charlotte Mason + the Guides to...
Ruth Beechick's 3R's
Confessions of an Organized Homemake
Last Child in the Woods - Richard Louv
Story of the World by Peace Hill Press
Literature Pockets and Daily Language Review - Evan Moore
Code Word Caper by Letter Factory - DVD
Meet the Sight Words - DVD
The Weighty Word Book - Levitt, Burger, Guralnick
Criket in Timesquare - CD
Mr. Popper's Penguins - CD
The Web Files - Margie Palatini
Math-U-See
Primary Grade Challenge Math - Edward Zaccaro
Math-It
Life of Fred - Stanely F. Schmidt
children's math stories - Stuart Murphey
Draw Write Now
Science Units from Debra Bell's Subject by grade lists
Printable Rescources - donnayoung.org
Debra Bells Ultimate Guide to Home Schooling
Charlotte Mason + the Guides to...
Ruth Beechick's 3R's
Confessions of an Organized Homemake
Last Child in the Woods - Richard Louv
Story of the World by Peace Hill Press
Literature Pockets and Daily Language Review - Evan Moore
Code Word Caper by Letter Factory - DVD
Meet the Sight Words - DVD
The Weighty Word Book - Levitt, Burger, Guralnick
Criket in Timesquare - CD
Mr. Popper's Penguins - CD
The Web Files - Margie Palatini
Math-U-See
Primary Grade Challenge Math - Edward Zaccaro
Math-It
Life of Fred - Stanely F. Schmidt
children's math stories - Stuart Murphey
Draw Write Now
Science Units from Debra Bell's Subject by grade lists
September 18, 2009
Trusting Our Children to Learn
I was most impressed by the John Holt's incredible empathy he shows for children in his book, How Children Learn. He gives us permission as parents to love children where they are and encourages us to look at things the way they do. I loved every part of this book! It has already changed they way I parent.
John Holt-
John Holt-
"What we have to do is break this long downward cycle of fear and distrust, and trust children as we ourselves were not trusted."
Children learn with the spirit of joy, foolishness and exuberance like the spirit of all good games including the game of trying to find our how the world works which we call "education."
August 31, 2009
Why Leadership Education?
In a Deseret News article that was published August 25, 2009 by Irene Maher, stated that “Starting or returning to school can be stressful and trigger emotions and anxiety in children that even the most attentive parents may miss.”
The article continues: “School can put (children) over the top. It has nothing to do with school, actually. That’s just the place the child brings his emotional baggage, says Dr. Peter Gorski, (a University of South Florida pediatrician who specializes in developmental and behavioral medicine).
Colette Parker of Tampa thought her youngest son, Xavier Williams, would handle kindergarten without much fuss, just as his older brothers did.
But two weeks into his first school year she started getting calls from his teacher. Five-year-old Xavier was throwing things, blowing up emotionally, running out of the classroom, acting aggressively and physically fighting with other children. The teacher couldn’t handle him.
Parker, 33, says her son had a difficult time making the adjustment from the familiar friends and caregivers at day care to the more structured environment of kindergarten. Day care was all about play. ‘In school he had to sit down and do work,’ says Parker.
‘We see a lot of families who never had issues with their kids until school started,’ says John Mayo, a licensed child therapist and deputy executive director of Success 4 Kids & Families.”
What is wrong with this picture?? For most of my life I would have said that some kids are going to have a harder time leaving home and adjusting going to kindergarten than other kids, but it’s a fact of life. Your child “has” to leave you at age five, and like it or not he or she has to start making his or her own way in the world.
I remember very well how I stood in a line of mothers and their kindergartners waiting for the bell to ring, signaling the first day of school. This was my last biological child and I knew I wouldn’t be able to have any more children. My heart was breaking and tears were willfully held back as I attempted to put on a brave face for my little girl. I look back at this experience with much regret and realize there is nothing I can do now to change what happened then. But I have the knowledge and power to change the outcome for the adopted children I have in my home now. The single greatest paradigm shift of my life has occurred because of discovering “Leadership Education.” I would like to share some my favorite parts in the book by Oliver and Rachel DeMille entitled Leadership Education - The Phases of Learning, that contributed to my transformation.
(Page 18) “Leadership Education recognizes the need for freedom in education and encourages self-motivation and personal mission accomplishment that result in feelings of inherent self-worth, leadership and compassion for others. The conveyor belt enforces sameness and aims to foster feelings of societal interdependence, based upon feelings of personal inadequacy and dependency on experts as the norm.”
(Page 23) “The greatest irony in modern education is that we will not let children play when that is practically all our teenagers do. What if children played and worked with their parents more and were lovingly taught about good and bad, right and wrong and true and false? What if youth worked very hard and put in long hours getting a great education and preparing for their life mission? What amazing results could come of making such a reversal in our society!”
(Page 45) “The increasing intellectual demands of the child in Love of Learning Phase upon the parent require that the home life and family’s time be kept as uncomplicated possible. Too many outside activities, no matter how valuable or interesting, can be over-stimulating for the child and draw him much too soon away from the ties that bind him to the nest. Too much “stuff,” either as clutter in the home or as entertainments and possessions that rob time from the necessary “right kind of vacuum” (that space of discomfort/boredom that impels a young person to exert himself to accomplish something worthwhile) can derail a family’s education... It is okay to stay home! It is okay to just play sometimes! We need to take responsibility to fill our homes with wholesomeness, warmth, light and learning and provide the time for family members to benefit from this ideal environment.
(Page 86) “The two biggest complaints are that Scholar Phase is too hard and the Love of Learning Phase is too easy.... There is nothing more challenging in the entire educational world than an excellent Love of Learning Phase. Day in and day out, week after week and year after year, the parent-teacher’s role is to inspire the child to happily, consistently and unswervingly study, learn, search, discover, enlighten, know and apply. The sad reason that people think Love of Learning is ‘easy’ is that they have been brainwashed by the conveyor belt. When they hear ‘Inspire, not Require,’ their brains are so conditioned against combining ‘inspire’ with ‘education’ that they actually go home remembering something very much like ‘ignore, not require.’”
(Page 127) “There are two proven ways to create a teenager: 1) force and push children academically and 2) let them do whatever they want in their personal life. In contrast, young adults are raised by parents who: 1) have firm disciplinary standards and 2) a high quality freedom-oriented educational system. The two components of creating youth are natural and excellent complements.”
(Page 135) “It is interesting that some modern feminists have described the stay-at-home mom or homemaker as caught in a life of boredom, subjugation and sad mediocrity. But true feminine ambition focused on the training of future leaders who fully understand and can accomplish their missions is the greatest challenge and opportunity of our time or any time. It is not enough to train up one’s own children. The true mother must also train and properly raise the whole community in which her children grow up, looking ahead three or four generations and acting accordingly. This is not a government village raising the child, but a mother raising her own children, her future sons- and daughters-in-law, and communities of great and good leaders who will ensure the liberty of their grandchildren. Not, ‘It takes a village to raise a child,’ but, ‘It takes a mother to raise a village.’”
(Page 135 - con’t) “The greatest educators are fathers and mother - from Eve, Mary, the mothers of Moses , Washington , Jefferson and Lincoln, to the women who embrace and magnify their roles and responsibilities as mothers in your neighborhood and your own family. These are statemen and stateswomen engaged in the work of building the family-the basic unit of society. A stateswoman puts her relationship with God and spouse in their proper place of preeminence, leads an inspirational life, is actively progressing through the phases herself, runs a Mom School, has her home arranged as a leadership home, says ‘no’ and ‘yes’ in the Leadership way, and mentors through the Phases of a Leadership Education. She is a powerful example of a woman living a life of challenging, fulfilling, exciting feminine ambition and expertise that is literally world-changing. It takes a mother to raise a nation.”
(Page 283) “A life spent making the world better for your future grandchildren is a life of service, leadership, and greatness. It takes a full lifetime to really make change. This is the message and purpose of life and the most important thing any of us can ever do. It is the reason for our lives. We better get started on it early, or as soon as we realize what it is all about.”
I didn’t understand “what it is (really) all about” until I was already a grandmother. Nevertheless, it is not too late for me to transform myself and become a scholar and provide leadership education in my home and community. When we open our hearts and souls and become receptive to what blessings God has in store for us, He will lead and guide us to where we need to be so that we can accomplish our missions and true purposes for being here on this earth. It is through applying the principles taught in Leadership Education that we can accomplish our life’s mission by guiding and preparing the future leaders of the world in our own homes and inspiring others to do the same.
No longer do I believe the myth that compulsory education is a fact of life and that there is no other choice but a conveyor belt education that enforces sameness and “feelings of personal inadequacy and dependency on experts as the norm.” I wish I could let all the “Colette Parkers” of the world know about Leadership Education and that there is a much better and more joyful way to nurture and educate your children and be the change you wish to see in the world. Little five year-old Xavier wouldn’t be carrying emotional baggage to school because he would be able to stay home with his mother who would teach him basic core principles and allow him to be a child and not worry about scholarly pursuits until he had a great core phase and loved to learn. Imagine how different Colette and Xavier’s lives would be with Leadership Education.
The article continues: “School can put (children) over the top. It has nothing to do with school, actually. That’s just the place the child brings his emotional baggage, says Dr. Peter Gorski, (a University of South Florida pediatrician who specializes in developmental and behavioral medicine).
Colette Parker of Tampa thought her youngest son, Xavier Williams, would handle kindergarten without much fuss, just as his older brothers did.
But two weeks into his first school year she started getting calls from his teacher. Five-year-old Xavier was throwing things, blowing up emotionally, running out of the classroom, acting aggressively and physically fighting with other children. The teacher couldn’t handle him.
Parker, 33, says her son had a difficult time making the adjustment from the familiar friends and caregivers at day care to the more structured environment of kindergarten. Day care was all about play. ‘In school he had to sit down and do work,’ says Parker.
‘We see a lot of families who never had issues with their kids until school started,’ says John Mayo, a licensed child therapist and deputy executive director of Success 4 Kids & Families.”
What is wrong with this picture?? For most of my life I would have said that some kids are going to have a harder time leaving home and adjusting going to kindergarten than other kids, but it’s a fact of life. Your child “has” to leave you at age five, and like it or not he or she has to start making his or her own way in the world.
I remember very well how I stood in a line of mothers and their kindergartners waiting for the bell to ring, signaling the first day of school. This was my last biological child and I knew I wouldn’t be able to have any more children. My heart was breaking and tears were willfully held back as I attempted to put on a brave face for my little girl. I look back at this experience with much regret and realize there is nothing I can do now to change what happened then. But I have the knowledge and power to change the outcome for the adopted children I have in my home now. The single greatest paradigm shift of my life has occurred because of discovering “Leadership Education.” I would like to share some my favorite parts in the book by Oliver and Rachel DeMille entitled Leadership Education - The Phases of Learning, that contributed to my transformation.
(Page 18) “Leadership Education recognizes the need for freedom in education and encourages self-motivation and personal mission accomplishment that result in feelings of inherent self-worth, leadership and compassion for others. The conveyor belt enforces sameness and aims to foster feelings of societal interdependence, based upon feelings of personal inadequacy and dependency on experts as the norm.”
(Page 23) “The greatest irony in modern education is that we will not let children play when that is practically all our teenagers do. What if children played and worked with their parents more and were lovingly taught about good and bad, right and wrong and true and false? What if youth worked very hard and put in long hours getting a great education and preparing for their life mission? What amazing results could come of making such a reversal in our society!”
(Page 45) “The increasing intellectual demands of the child in Love of Learning Phase upon the parent require that the home life and family’s time be kept as uncomplicated possible. Too many outside activities, no matter how valuable or interesting, can be over-stimulating for the child and draw him much too soon away from the ties that bind him to the nest. Too much “stuff,” either as clutter in the home or as entertainments and possessions that rob time from the necessary “right kind of vacuum” (that space of discomfort/boredom that impels a young person to exert himself to accomplish something worthwhile) can derail a family’s education... It is okay to stay home! It is okay to just play sometimes! We need to take responsibility to fill our homes with wholesomeness, warmth, light and learning and provide the time for family members to benefit from this ideal environment.
(Page 86) “The two biggest complaints are that Scholar Phase is too hard and the Love of Learning Phase is too easy.... There is nothing more challenging in the entire educational world than an excellent Love of Learning Phase. Day in and day out, week after week and year after year, the parent-teacher’s role is to inspire the child to happily, consistently and unswervingly study, learn, search, discover, enlighten, know and apply. The sad reason that people think Love of Learning is ‘easy’ is that they have been brainwashed by the conveyor belt. When they hear ‘Inspire, not Require,’ their brains are so conditioned against combining ‘inspire’ with ‘education’ that they actually go home remembering something very much like ‘ignore, not require.’”
(Page 127) “There are two proven ways to create a teenager: 1) force and push children academically and 2) let them do whatever they want in their personal life. In contrast, young adults are raised by parents who: 1) have firm disciplinary standards and 2) a high quality freedom-oriented educational system. The two components of creating youth are natural and excellent complements.”
(Page 135) “It is interesting that some modern feminists have described the stay-at-home mom or homemaker as caught in a life of boredom, subjugation and sad mediocrity. But true feminine ambition focused on the training of future leaders who fully understand and can accomplish their missions is the greatest challenge and opportunity of our time or any time. It is not enough to train up one’s own children. The true mother must also train and properly raise the whole community in which her children grow up, looking ahead three or four generations and acting accordingly. This is not a government village raising the child, but a mother raising her own children, her future sons- and daughters-in-law, and communities of great and good leaders who will ensure the liberty of their grandchildren. Not, ‘It takes a village to raise a child,’ but, ‘It takes a mother to raise a village.’”
(Page 135 - con’t) “The greatest educators are fathers and mother - from Eve, Mary, the mothers of Moses , Washington , Jefferson and Lincoln, to the women who embrace and magnify their roles and responsibilities as mothers in your neighborhood and your own family. These are statemen and stateswomen engaged in the work of building the family-the basic unit of society. A stateswoman puts her relationship with God and spouse in their proper place of preeminence, leads an inspirational life, is actively progressing through the phases herself, runs a Mom School, has her home arranged as a leadership home, says ‘no’ and ‘yes’ in the Leadership way, and mentors through the Phases of a Leadership Education. She is a powerful example of a woman living a life of challenging, fulfilling, exciting feminine ambition and expertise that is literally world-changing. It takes a mother to raise a nation.”
(Page 283) “A life spent making the world better for your future grandchildren is a life of service, leadership, and greatness. It takes a full lifetime to really make change. This is the message and purpose of life and the most important thing any of us can ever do. It is the reason for our lives. We better get started on it early, or as soon as we realize what it is all about.”
I didn’t understand “what it is (really) all about” until I was already a grandmother. Nevertheless, it is not too late for me to transform myself and become a scholar and provide leadership education in my home and community. When we open our hearts and souls and become receptive to what blessings God has in store for us, He will lead and guide us to where we need to be so that we can accomplish our missions and true purposes for being here on this earth. It is through applying the principles taught in Leadership Education that we can accomplish our life’s mission by guiding and preparing the future leaders of the world in our own homes and inspiring others to do the same.
No longer do I believe the myth that compulsory education is a fact of life and that there is no other choice but a conveyor belt education that enforces sameness and “feelings of personal inadequacy and dependency on experts as the norm.” I wish I could let all the “Colette Parkers” of the world know about Leadership Education and that there is a much better and more joyful way to nurture and educate your children and be the change you wish to see in the world. Little five year-old Xavier wouldn’t be carrying emotional baggage to school because he would be able to stay home with his mother who would teach him basic core principles and allow him to be a child and not worry about scholarly pursuits until he had a great core phase and loved to learn. Imagine how different Colette and Xavier’s lives would be with Leadership Education.
June 27, 2009
Les Miserables Preface Quote
So long as there shall exist, by reason of law and custom, a social condemnation which, in the face of civilization, artificially creates hells on earth, and complicates a destiny that is divine, with human fatality; so long as the three problems of the age - the degradation of man by poverty, the ruin of woman by starvation, and the dwarfing of childhood by physical and spiritual night - are not solved; so long as in certain regions, social asphyxia shall be possible; in other words, and from yet more extended point of view, so long as ignorance and misery remain on earth, book like this cannot be useless.
Hauteville House 1862
Hauteville House 1862
June's Title Swap
Napoleon by Lucy Lethbridge
The Parenting Break Through by Merrilee Boyack
Blink by Malcome Gladwell
The Tipping Point by Malcome Gladwell
The Star Catchers and Peter Pan by Dave Barry (recommended as a family read aloud)
Music Theatre of Idaho mtionline.org
The Parenting Break Through by Merrilee Boyack
Blink by Malcome Gladwell
The Tipping Point by Malcome Gladwell
The Star Catchers and Peter Pan by Dave Barry (recommended as a family read aloud)
Music Theatre of Idaho mtionline.org
May 27, 2009
My Life in the Millennial Saeculum
I was born in April during a First Turning. I am one of many post war or victory babies born during an era of good schools, strong families, and general security. The 4th Turning has special meaning for me because the seasons of the Saeculum exactly match those of my own life. From Spring to Winter, history’s seasons are those of my life cycle as well.
My childhood was simple. My parents immigrated from Germany in 1956 to start their lives all over again. They carried all their worldly possessions in two suitcases and were 500 dollars in debt. They came to America with one goal in mind: give their children a better life than what they had endured during the Great Depression and World War II. My father and his brother started up their own concrete business making fireplaces, building facades and garden figurines. My father was also a part-time musician and assembled his own band that entertained other German immigrants. My mother stayed home and raised us four children. We went from abject poverty to a comfortable level of existence in a few years through hard work and the opportunities that America provided my family.
In this era, children were raised to be idealistic. We were adorable as babies, cute as grade school pupils and striking as we entered our teens, after which our parents would be very, very proud of us. I was supposed to become famous when I grew up. My parents expected me to become a famous dancer or violinist. Then my Opa in Germany would see me on television and he could tell all his friends that I was his granddaughter. But I had other ideas and without realizing it at the time, joined the many other Boomers who questioned their parents’ values and then rebelled against the establishment. I could not accept that the purpose of my life was to simply live out the fantasies of my parents and grandparents because they had been deprived of the opportunities that were given to me. Even as a young child I knew I had been born for a different purpose.
Along came Summer and the great Awakening. Shakespeare wrote, “Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,” and my secure world was shaken up with my parent’s divorce in 1970. America ’s sexual revolution hit the Silent Generation at an awkward phase of life, just when they had kids at home. From 1969-1975, there was a divorce epidemic. Men felt claustrophobic and women felt resentful. My parents were no exception. The 1970's were the cult of the adult. The cost of raising a child became a hot topic. Adults ranked autos ahead of children as necessary for a good life. My father valued his exotic birds more than he did his children. He was deeply engrossed in himself and satisfying his own needs. Meanwhile, my mother was burdened with raising her four children by herself and needing to rely on church welfare to get us through the hard times. What a rude awakening!
I got married in 1977. My three children were born in 1978, 1980 and 1983, all during the end of the 2nd Turning. I went back to nursing school in 1985 and spent the next three straight years going to school full-time. My youngest was two years old at the time and she (and her siblings) had to get used to having a part-time mom. I had married young and started having children before I had the chance to fulfill my dream of becoming a Registered Nurse. My children had to pay the price of my dream because I had had them before I could do what I wanted to. After all, I am my father’s daughter.
My three biological children and an adopted son had to grow up in a hurry. They were latch-key kids while I worked full-time. They learned to be independent, resourceful and competitive at an early age. They were given every opportunity to learn survival skills. When my oldest son, David, was only 11 years old, he went on a two week trip across the United States with a private school that he had barely joined during the middle of the school year. He was subject to migraine type headaches when stressed, and of course experienced one in Denver , after the first couple of days on the trip. We were ready to go and pick him up and bring him home, but he toughed it out. At age 12, he spent 24 hours in isolation in the desert near Escalante as part of his curriculum. At age 15, he and his 17 year old sister flew unaccompanied to Germany to spend the summer traveling all over Europe with my sister’s family. Is it any wonder that David left home (to attend college) at age 17, after spending the summer working as a Boy Scout river running guide on the Snake River? David’s sisters have had similar growing up experiences. They are all grown up now, have children of their own and live out of state. At times it is painful for us to live so far away from one another, but we all know that they know how to survive without me. They were raised that way.
In the 1st Turning there is an economy of abundance and a psychology of scarcity. In the 3rd Turning there is an economy of scarcity and a psychology of abundance. 1984 started economic policy of large deficits, unchecked growth in entitlements spending, decreased national savings rates and heavy borrowing from foreigners. By the 1990's, fiscal excess, as well as personal excess was a way of life. The gap between the rich and poor widened. Most of America ’s adults grew up in a society with perpetually improving outcomes, better jobs, fatter wallets, stronger government, finer culture, nicer families, smarter kids, all the usual fruits of progress, but during the Unraveling, these goals were slipping away and we feared for our children and grandchildren. Dan Quayle diagnosed an ethical cancer that had metastasized through all levels of society. The Unraveling had darkened the quality of American Life.
People no longer trusted the government, but trusted the individual. There was no such thing as “normal” opinions. People found their own “niche” groups and each group exalted its own authenticity. It defined its adversary’s values as indecent, stupid, obscene and evil. The institutional order was not working and not worth defending and no one felt responsible for things as they now stood. During the 1990's, America ’s niche groups conflict came to be known as the “culture wars.” By empowering the ideals of the Awakening, the Unraveling laid the agenda for the crisis to follow.
During the 3rd Turning, my husband and I looked forward to having our children grown up and having some time for ourselves. I enrolled in college when my last two children were in high school so I could finally pursue an advanced nursing degree and further my career opportunities. At the same time I felt conflicted inside while fighting my own culture war. I came to realize that I had not yet fulfilled the divine purpose of my life. I was disenchanted with the pursuit of material wealth, status and entertainment. Staring at the prospect of having an empty nest, it didn’t seem so appealing anymore. We were at a major crossroad in our lives. My husband and I both had wonderful, secure jobs that we loved. We lived in a five-level stucco home that had recently been built for us and a large yard that we had landscaped ourselves. We loved our neighborhood and our ward. I was the Young Women’s President and I had great girls that I loved. We sang in a community choir that was very talented and sang at various community events. Our lives were full and busy and as perfect as they could be.
But the burning question I had inside of me that I had to know the answer to was this: Did I have the faith and courage necessary to sacrifice everything (as the Mormon Pioneers did) for a greater cause than just my own selfish consumption of material goods? What could I possibly contribute to the world in the very deepest sense, to give my life true meaning and purpose? I discussed my questions with my husband and turned my quest over to God and He answered me in ways beyond my wildest imagination.
My husband and I willingly walked away from everything we had built up together and started over again because it was for us, the right thing to do. We were born during the Spring and grew up during the Summer of this saeculum. We are principled visionaries with passionate values. Life isn’t worth living for us without being able to actually live what we believe deep down inside. Now that we have moved to a small community with our six adopted children and have returned back to the basics, living a much simpler lifestyle, we are living The Dream. We are no longer wasting our time and energy pursuing that which has no lasting value. We are fulfilling the measure of our creation by parenting and teaching six beautiful children that would otherwise have had no future. We have become Prophet parents raising a Hero generation along with our Nomad Children raising our Hero grandchildren in the 4th Turning.
Winter has arrived and we are preparing for tough times ahead. These are the most exciting and challenging times of all the seasons. Each generation serves a unique and important role in the 4th Turning constellation of generational archetypes.
As elder Prophets, we translate our lifelong values agenda into commandments that exact sacrifice from ourselves and others. From the young, we seek personal obedience and respect. To the young, we offer opportunity for heroism and achievement unlike anything they themselves had known at like age. As elder Prophets, we will provide the torch of conviction for younger generations during their times of trials. The Gray Champions will lead at a time of maximum danger and opportunity.
As midlife Nomads, our older children must step forward as the saeculum’s repair generation, the ones stuck with fixing the messes and cleaning up the debris left by others. They are the pragmatic managers of the crisis. They must keep the Prophets from wreaking needless destruction and the Heroes from marching too mindlessly under their elders’ banner. History is counting on them to do whatever hard jobs are necessary.
As young adult Heroes, our younger children and older grandchildren are the soldiers of the crisis. This generation complies with authority and accepts the need for public sacrifice and public virtue. They will work together as a team and build a reputation for meeting and exceeding older adult expectations.
As children Artists, our younger and future grandchildren are sensitive souls that must be protected during times of crisis. They are the vulnerable seeds of society’s future that must be saved while the emergency is overcome and the enemy defeated. They are the crisis era’s fearful watchers, tiny helpers and lucky inheritors if things turn out well.
With every 4th Turning there occurs an “ekpyrosis” - the death of an old order and a rebirth of something new. A 4th Turning clears out society’s exhausted elements and creates opportunity for fresh growth. It allows society’s survival instincts to emerge and harnesses all the archetypal strengths to maximum advantage, enabling society to work through problems that might otherwise destroy it.
There are three key points that I noticed are reoccurring themes in the book, The Fourth Turning. They are as follows:
1. An oscillation between the overprotection and underprotection of children.
2. The four archetypes lend balance and self-correction to each other and history.
3. History’s endings are open and subject to the good or bad acts of each generation.
“History is seasonal, but its outcomes are not foreordained. Much will depend on how tall we stand in the trials to come. But there is more to do than just wait for the time to come. The course of our national and personal destinies will depend in large measure on what we do now, as a society and as individuals, to prepare.” We need to move with the seasons and be present in the now. We cannot be stuck in the past, pining for easier times. We can best prepare by anticipating and preparing for the future.
My parents’ wish for their children to have a better life than they had, has come true. Without the sacrifices made by older generations in a previous 4th Turning, and my parents’sacrifice to leave their homeland and come to this amazing country of America , I would never have had the opportunity to live out my dreams. I will be forever grateful for all they have taught me to prepare me for my ultimate and final role as an elder Prophet during this 4th Turning. It is really true: the core dynamic of the saeculum is that history shapes generations and generations shape history. May we each play our parts well when it matters the most, so that our future generations can also have the opportunity to live out their dreams. It’s all up to us now and the outcome of the last turning of the Millennial Saeculum.
My childhood was simple. My parents immigrated from Germany in 1956 to start their lives all over again. They carried all their worldly possessions in two suitcases and were 500 dollars in debt. They came to America with one goal in mind: give their children a better life than what they had endured during the Great Depression and World War II. My father and his brother started up their own concrete business making fireplaces, building facades and garden figurines. My father was also a part-time musician and assembled his own band that entertained other German immigrants. My mother stayed home and raised us four children. We went from abject poverty to a comfortable level of existence in a few years through hard work and the opportunities that America provided my family.
In this era, children were raised to be idealistic. We were adorable as babies, cute as grade school pupils and striking as we entered our teens, after which our parents would be very, very proud of us. I was supposed to become famous when I grew up. My parents expected me to become a famous dancer or violinist. Then my Opa in Germany would see me on television and he could tell all his friends that I was his granddaughter. But I had other ideas and without realizing it at the time, joined the many other Boomers who questioned their parents’ values and then rebelled against the establishment. I could not accept that the purpose of my life was to simply live out the fantasies of my parents and grandparents because they had been deprived of the opportunities that were given to me. Even as a young child I knew I had been born for a different purpose.
Along came Summer and the great Awakening. Shakespeare wrote, “Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,” and my secure world was shaken up with my parent’s divorce in 1970. America ’s sexual revolution hit the Silent Generation at an awkward phase of life, just when they had kids at home. From 1969-1975, there was a divorce epidemic. Men felt claustrophobic and women felt resentful. My parents were no exception. The 1970's were the cult of the adult. The cost of raising a child became a hot topic. Adults ranked autos ahead of children as necessary for a good life. My father valued his exotic birds more than he did his children. He was deeply engrossed in himself and satisfying his own needs. Meanwhile, my mother was burdened with raising her four children by herself and needing to rely on church welfare to get us through the hard times. What a rude awakening!
I got married in 1977. My three children were born in 1978, 1980 and 1983, all during the end of the 2nd Turning. I went back to nursing school in 1985 and spent the next three straight years going to school full-time. My youngest was two years old at the time and she (and her siblings) had to get used to having a part-time mom. I had married young and started having children before I had the chance to fulfill my dream of becoming a Registered Nurse. My children had to pay the price of my dream because I had had them before I could do what I wanted to. After all, I am my father’s daughter.
My three biological children and an adopted son had to grow up in a hurry. They were latch-key kids while I worked full-time. They learned to be independent, resourceful and competitive at an early age. They were given every opportunity to learn survival skills. When my oldest son, David, was only 11 years old, he went on a two week trip across the United States with a private school that he had barely joined during the middle of the school year. He was subject to migraine type headaches when stressed, and of course experienced one in Denver , after the first couple of days on the trip. We were ready to go and pick him up and bring him home, but he toughed it out. At age 12, he spent 24 hours in isolation in the desert near Escalante as part of his curriculum. At age 15, he and his 17 year old sister flew unaccompanied to Germany to spend the summer traveling all over Europe with my sister’s family. Is it any wonder that David left home (to attend college) at age 17, after spending the summer working as a Boy Scout river running guide on the Snake River? David’s sisters have had similar growing up experiences. They are all grown up now, have children of their own and live out of state. At times it is painful for us to live so far away from one another, but we all know that they know how to survive without me. They were raised that way.
In the 1st Turning there is an economy of abundance and a psychology of scarcity. In the 3rd Turning there is an economy of scarcity and a psychology of abundance. 1984 started economic policy of large deficits, unchecked growth in entitlements spending, decreased national savings rates and heavy borrowing from foreigners. By the 1990's, fiscal excess, as well as personal excess was a way of life. The gap between the rich and poor widened. Most of America ’s adults grew up in a society with perpetually improving outcomes, better jobs, fatter wallets, stronger government, finer culture, nicer families, smarter kids, all the usual fruits of progress, but during the Unraveling, these goals were slipping away and we feared for our children and grandchildren. Dan Quayle diagnosed an ethical cancer that had metastasized through all levels of society. The Unraveling had darkened the quality of American Life.
People no longer trusted the government, but trusted the individual. There was no such thing as “normal” opinions. People found their own “niche” groups and each group exalted its own authenticity. It defined its adversary’s values as indecent, stupid, obscene and evil. The institutional order was not working and not worth defending and no one felt responsible for things as they now stood. During the 1990's, America ’s niche groups conflict came to be known as the “culture wars.” By empowering the ideals of the Awakening, the Unraveling laid the agenda for the crisis to follow.
During the 3rd Turning, my husband and I looked forward to having our children grown up and having some time for ourselves. I enrolled in college when my last two children were in high school so I could finally pursue an advanced nursing degree and further my career opportunities. At the same time I felt conflicted inside while fighting my own culture war. I came to realize that I had not yet fulfilled the divine purpose of my life. I was disenchanted with the pursuit of material wealth, status and entertainment. Staring at the prospect of having an empty nest, it didn’t seem so appealing anymore. We were at a major crossroad in our lives. My husband and I both had wonderful, secure jobs that we loved. We lived in a five-level stucco home that had recently been built for us and a large yard that we had landscaped ourselves. We loved our neighborhood and our ward. I was the Young Women’s President and I had great girls that I loved. We sang in a community choir that was very talented and sang at various community events. Our lives were full and busy and as perfect as they could be.
But the burning question I had inside of me that I had to know the answer to was this: Did I have the faith and courage necessary to sacrifice everything (as the Mormon Pioneers did) for a greater cause than just my own selfish consumption of material goods? What could I possibly contribute to the world in the very deepest sense, to give my life true meaning and purpose? I discussed my questions with my husband and turned my quest over to God and He answered me in ways beyond my wildest imagination.
My husband and I willingly walked away from everything we had built up together and started over again because it was for us, the right thing to do. We were born during the Spring and grew up during the Summer of this saeculum. We are principled visionaries with passionate values. Life isn’t worth living for us without being able to actually live what we believe deep down inside. Now that we have moved to a small community with our six adopted children and have returned back to the basics, living a much simpler lifestyle, we are living The Dream. We are no longer wasting our time and energy pursuing that which has no lasting value. We are fulfilling the measure of our creation by parenting and teaching six beautiful children that would otherwise have had no future. We have become Prophet parents raising a Hero generation along with our Nomad Children raising our Hero grandchildren in the 4th Turning.
Winter has arrived and we are preparing for tough times ahead. These are the most exciting and challenging times of all the seasons. Each generation serves a unique and important role in the 4th Turning constellation of generational archetypes.
As elder Prophets, we translate our lifelong values agenda into commandments that exact sacrifice from ourselves and others. From the young, we seek personal obedience and respect. To the young, we offer opportunity for heroism and achievement unlike anything they themselves had known at like age. As elder Prophets, we will provide the torch of conviction for younger generations during their times of trials. The Gray Champions will lead at a time of maximum danger and opportunity.
As midlife Nomads, our older children must step forward as the saeculum’s repair generation, the ones stuck with fixing the messes and cleaning up the debris left by others. They are the pragmatic managers of the crisis. They must keep the Prophets from wreaking needless destruction and the Heroes from marching too mindlessly under their elders’ banner. History is counting on them to do whatever hard jobs are necessary.
As young adult Heroes, our younger children and older grandchildren are the soldiers of the crisis. This generation complies with authority and accepts the need for public sacrifice and public virtue. They will work together as a team and build a reputation for meeting and exceeding older adult expectations.
As children Artists, our younger and future grandchildren are sensitive souls that must be protected during times of crisis. They are the vulnerable seeds of society’s future that must be saved while the emergency is overcome and the enemy defeated. They are the crisis era’s fearful watchers, tiny helpers and lucky inheritors if things turn out well.
With every 4th Turning there occurs an “ekpyrosis” - the death of an old order and a rebirth of something new. A 4th Turning clears out society’s exhausted elements and creates opportunity for fresh growth. It allows society’s survival instincts to emerge and harnesses all the archetypal strengths to maximum advantage, enabling society to work through problems that might otherwise destroy it.
There are three key points that I noticed are reoccurring themes in the book, The Fourth Turning. They are as follows:
1. An oscillation between the overprotection and underprotection of children.
2. The four archetypes lend balance and self-correction to each other and history.
3. History’s endings are open and subject to the good or bad acts of each generation.
“History is seasonal, but its outcomes are not foreordained. Much will depend on how tall we stand in the trials to come. But there is more to do than just wait for the time to come. The course of our national and personal destinies will depend in large measure on what we do now, as a society and as individuals, to prepare.” We need to move with the seasons and be present in the now. We cannot be stuck in the past, pining for easier times. We can best prepare by anticipating and preparing for the future.
My parents’ wish for their children to have a better life than they had, has come true. Without the sacrifices made by older generations in a previous 4th Turning, and my parents’sacrifice to leave their homeland and come to this amazing country of America , I would never have had the opportunity to live out my dreams. I will be forever grateful for all they have taught me to prepare me for my ultimate and final role as an elder Prophet during this 4th Turning. It is really true: the core dynamic of the saeculum is that history shapes generations and generations shape history. May we each play our parts well when it matters the most, so that our future generations can also have the opportunity to live out their dreams. It’s all up to us now and the outcome of the last turning of the Millennial Saeculum.
May 23, 2009
May's Title Swap
The Other Eminent Men of Wilford Woodruff by Vicki Jo Anderson
Easy to Love, Difficult to Discipline by Becky A. Bailey
Man's Search for Meaning by Victor Frankel
Teaching Your Children to Fly by Merrilee Boyack
Easy to Love, Difficult to Discipline by Becky A. Bailey
Man's Search for Meaning by Victor Frankel
Teaching Your Children to Fly by Merrilee Boyack
A New Perspective
Steven R. Covey declares in his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, “we see the world not as it is, but as we are – or, as we are conditioned to see it.” (pg 28) In order to live our lives most effectively, the author encourages us to have a complete paradigm shift that is principle based, not just a personality shift of behaviors and attitude.
Personality ethics are social comparisons and judgments. When we focus on improving personality ethics, we tend to try to change just our techniques and often attempt to manipulate others into what is the acceptable social model. If there isn’t deep integrity and fundamental character strength, the challenges of life will cause our true motives to surface and relationships will fail.
Many people fall in the trap of only focusing on personality ethics. Instead, we have to look deep inside ourselves and find what we fundamentally believe and think. True character ethics are timeless and universal to all humanity because they are principle based. Principles such as: fairness, integrity, honesty, human dignity, service, quality or excellence, potential and growth.
A little over a year ago, my husband and I felt so lost and unsure about parenting our oldest son, who was only four at the time. We had tried every parenting technique heard of, and felt we were “losing him.” After coming across an educational model, known as a “Thomas Jefferson Education,” that was principle based, Richard and I had such a significant paradigm shift we have profoundly changed our lives.
We stopped trying to squish our son (or any of our children) into the box of social norms. We began to focus first on ourselves by fundamentally changing our self-perception and how we viewed our children. We realized that we needed to begin with the end in mind – to know what our missions were, and then watch for and help each of our children with their individual missions.
We began to put first things first to create a more inspiring learning environment by reading classics and removing the television from our home. As parents, we realized that we needed to model the type of behavior and attitudes that we expected our children to have, by being more emotionally mature than they were, instead of borrowing strength from our position and authority.
Richard and I realized that “The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them,” (Albert Einstein, pg 42). We found that principle based living and thinking was much more effective and satisfying, than just changing our parenting techniques. This road to valuing correct principles has been difficult, but well worth the effort. Keeping the end in mind, enables us to us have the courage to continue forward.
Personality ethics are social comparisons and judgments. When we focus on improving personality ethics, we tend to try to change just our techniques and often attempt to manipulate others into what is the acceptable social model. If there isn’t deep integrity and fundamental character strength, the challenges of life will cause our true motives to surface and relationships will fail.
Many people fall in the trap of only focusing on personality ethics. Instead, we have to look deep inside ourselves and find what we fundamentally believe and think. True character ethics are timeless and universal to all humanity because they are principle based. Principles such as: fairness, integrity, honesty, human dignity, service, quality or excellence, potential and growth.
A little over a year ago, my husband and I felt so lost and unsure about parenting our oldest son, who was only four at the time. We had tried every parenting technique heard of, and felt we were “losing him.” After coming across an educational model, known as a “Thomas Jefferson Education,” that was principle based, Richard and I had such a significant paradigm shift we have profoundly changed our lives.
We stopped trying to squish our son (or any of our children) into the box of social norms. We began to focus first on ourselves by fundamentally changing our self-perception and how we viewed our children. We realized that we needed to begin with the end in mind – to know what our missions were, and then watch for and help each of our children with their individual missions.
We began to put first things first to create a more inspiring learning environment by reading classics and removing the television from our home. As parents, we realized that we needed to model the type of behavior and attitudes that we expected our children to have, by being more emotionally mature than they were, instead of borrowing strength from our position and authority.
Richard and I realized that “The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them,” (Albert Einstein, pg 42). We found that principle based living and thinking was much more effective and satisfying, than just changing our parenting techniques. This road to valuing correct principles has been difficult, but well worth the effort. Keeping the end in mind, enables us to us have the courage to continue forward.
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