Day 129

30th May 2022

Chai & Chat

I don’t know if I mentioned this, but I left my job.

I haven’t started my new job yet, so I’m in this magical place where I’m not due to be anywhere at any time. 😁😁😁

Every morning it washes over me like a dream, only it’s real, and I float through the rest of the morning.

I met a friend for an early coffee.

8.30am. Tradie morning teatime. The bakery was wall-to-wall high-vis.

It was so nice to be out early with a girlfriend.

Later, I met Liam and the kids at 10am, for a meeting with our accountant.

Before home school the thought of taking them both to a professional meeting would have me in hives but now, apparently, they can sit there and draw for 45 minutes and interject with interesting questions!

I was so impressed. I sat there like a smug parent, the proud owner of perfect children. 😎

We may have fooled 1 person!!

Street Art

I left them to it after that and got on with my day.

Liam took them to the library, and they read a book on street art.

They looked up some of the early artists, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat & Keith Haring.

When I lived in New York I used to party with Ronnie Cutrone who worked as an assistant to Warhol.

He wasn’t a constant, but he knew people in my crew & he’d show up every other week.

That’s my Warhol story. Short & sweet. 😂

Liam says, they spoke about where street art came from, and how it was a way for people without a voice to share their message.

There are lots of themes around homelessness, inequality & corrupt governments.

When I finished my errands, I made a pot of soup & when the kids came home, we had family lunch.

It was so nice, and it’s been happening more and more lately.

After this we all separated and did our own thing.

The kids watched Sonic 2 and Liam beat the rain with some yard work.

After dinner we watched a doco with the kids called ‘We Feed People’.

It’s about a famous chef who rushes to the aid of people after a natural disaster. He and his team organise and cook food.

I didn’t think they’d sit through it but cookies helped! 🍪🍪🍪

It had some really powerful messages. Here’s the trailer.

Watch Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eYaSwwmGl4

We chatted about the importance of staying connected to people.

Staying connected to real issues & real things.

Is it bothering me that we haven’t done English or Math’s in a while?

Yep.

But I’m trying not to let it get to me.

School teaches us that learning has to be seen.

Seen on the page. Or in the craft that comes home.

But much of the learning we do is not seen.

It transfers from stories we read, movies we watch, and the discussions we have.

I have to remind myself of this.

Sometimes the school in me wants them to fill their text books, & sometimes I look for validation that it’s ok to take a few weeks off, now and again.

When your kids are having a low motivation day (or month!), try to remember this.

Put on a movie or doco and just, teach them a different way.