LESSONS AT BLACKBERRY INN

LESSONS AT BLACKBERRY INN by Karen Andreola. Illustrated by Nigel Andreola.

When I began "officially" homeschooling 16 years ago, the first book I read was For the Children's Sake. The second was Karen Andreola's Pocketful of Pinecones. I then bought all of Karen Andreola's back issues of The Parents' Review. The life portrayed in these books/magazines spoke not just to my mind, but to my heart as well. I am a lover of books, and I am a lover of God's creation. How could this method (Charlotte Mason) not speak volumes to me? After graduating my oldest two, who are both in college, and continuing to school three more at home, I realized I have kept some of the foundational CM principles, but sometimes I found myself reaching for other methods when I wasn't sure how to make the process work in certain subjects with certain ages. I'm okay with that. It is okay to be a CM purist, and it's ok to be a mixed bag homeschooler. (It's fine to choose another method as well). It worked for us. However, recently I was at our homeschool convention, and I picked up a copy of Lessons at Blackberry Inn. I dipped right back into a book that filled my soul like a drink from a cold spring on a hot day. Literally! If you have drunk from a spring like this you know what I'm talking about. I probably will never be a purist, but I am returning more to those ideas. It is very interesting to come full circle in a life journey.