Mud

I was reading Thomas Watson's The Lord's Prayer this morning and looking at the very first phrase, "Our Father". Watson comments that all men can claim Him as Creator and Judge, but only His children can call Him Father. What's more, we are just "dust with sin mingled", and yet the Lord of Hosts gladly claims us as His own possession. I am trying to get my brain around this.

Reading the Puritans is like eating fudge -- the stuff is so rich it's hard to handle in large chunks.

Beginning Chinese

Here are my observations, after several weeks of "beginning Chinese":

1. The most common word in Mandarin is sh. Depending on inflection, this means "is" (sh.), the number 10 (sh!), or "to eat" (sh-), or maybe "to go" (sh) unless it occurs at the end of a word like -shi, meaning a master of something. Practice this.

Note: This is easily confused with the word s! which means "four".

2. The most common sound in Mandarin is /tchzz/. This is spelled ch, ts, z, zh, j, x, or q. I am not making this up. As a word, for example, j means "to eat" or "know" (with dao). I know I said sh means "to eat". It's the same thing.

3. You should not confuse the word ma (horse) or ma! (mother) with the word ma , which is a question word like the Candian eh? Questions in Chinese always sound Canadian, like "You are American, ma?"

4. You should always be sure to distinguish zhong! (the center of something) from zhong! (clock) and Zhong- (Chinese), not to mention zhong! which is the sound made by a gong. Gong however means "work".

5. You should always respond to comments about your excellent Chinese ("Knee pooting whah shoot the hen house!") with the modest statement, "Why, shoot the blue cow!", which means "I do not speak well."

6. It is rude to interrupt someone and say "Gesundheit" if they say cashew, which is a conjunction, "but"

7. Ta means he, she, or it. It's obvious if it's written.

8. Zi! Nar? means "Where?" Zi! Nar! means "Over there." Zi! Jar! means "Rat cheer."

9. Wo? means "I" but it can also mean "me", "my", or "mine". Women means "we" but it also means "us", "our", and "ours".

10. The number "two" is pronounced are? but you don't use it for people or beer.

11. If you have a Western name, you might be given a phonetic equivalent by combining Mandarin words to yield roughly the same sound. From the Chinese translation of the Bible, then, "John" naturally becomes Yue Han which seems to mean "monthly check" but sounds vaguely like "Johann". Likewise, "Caleb" becomes Jia Lei which appears to mean "Lord Buddha strangles" and doesn't sound like "Caleb" at all.

More helpful information to follow as we learn even more useful Mandarin phrases.

Busy, Busy, Busy

It has not been a quiet week in Lake Wobegon, not this one. There have been several deadlines since the last post, including two articles for publication (my regular column in NCHE's Greenhouse Report and a revision of a previously published piece, to go in the Florida Parent Educators Association magazine, Agenda)

BTW, after much innocent merriment by my fellow board members, my column was given the name "Hal's About It" (I decided it was less edgy than "Hal, Caesar" or "What the Hal"). After cranking out about fifteen of these the past couple of years, I wonder if readers aren't asking, "Isn't there something better than this?" and finding the answer is, no, Hal's about it.

Anyway, the push to finish several projects in short order has left little time for blogging, other than a few posts at The Locker Room and a few news items for NCHE's statewide blog page.

Back at the ranch, we are making an effort to learn basic Chinese -- everyone over the age of two. Eldest son John and I are taking a "Chinese As a Second Language" class at the Raleigh Academy of the Chinese Language (meeting in a church every Saturday), while we're all reviewing the Pimsleur Method CDs and spending an hour on Sunday afternoons with a student from Shanghai, working on pronunciation and cultural questions.

Oh, and we have a student driver who just had braces removed, immediately after a week as a N.C. Senate page.

Just another week in homeschooling ...

Executive Session

Our family has been reading the Gospel of Mark for evening devotions the past few weeks. Something struck me anew this time and I've pointed it out to the kids.

In Mark 4:1-9, Jesus relates the parable of the sower (or the soil, or the seed -- all three are appropriate). He finishes, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear." In verses 10-20, He explains the symbolism to His disciples, privately, because "to you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God." (v.11)

Unlike the multitude who walked away, we are invited to hear Jesus' private teaching. We modern Gentile believers, or anyone who cares to investigate, have the opportunity through the printed Word to receive the same revelation of this parable that Jesus reserved for the hand-picked inner circle of friends.

How incredible that is, and what a rebuke to us if we are slack in our study, or ungrateful for the invitation.

Dangerous Reading

Nineteenth-century Presbyterian theologian R. L. Dabney wrote an excellent essay, "On Dangerous Reading", on the subject of indiscriminate or incautious literary exercise. That is probably one of the more prevalent problems in modern Christian culture, and I'd include unquestioning scans of the funnies or over-tolerant settings on the car radio in the mix.

That being said, there is a great deal of literature which is not explicitly "Christian" in content but can be incorporated into a Christian world view. Francis Schaeffer and more recently Doug Wilson understood the concept well and, as Schaeffer said, promoted artistic work which had not only a good message, but good art (much on Christian radio fails the latter test, as Schaeffer's son observed in Addicted to Mediocrity).

I started keeping a record of my reading several years ago when I wanted to ensure a proper, profitable, and God-honoring balance of my time in the library. Looking over last year's tally -- sixty-two books completed in the course of 2004 -- a few things show up:

The two "general nonfiction" titles were actually the two which have shaped my thought the most this year. Milton and Rose Friedman's market manifesto, Free to Choose, is somewhat dated, coming out just as the Reagan Revolution was dawning and reflecting the problems of "stagflation" and "malaise" which propelled him into office. As such, though, it clearly shows how much Reagan's policies improved economic life in America. Mitchell Stephens' study of the organizational nature of the homeschooling movement, Kingdom of Children, was recommended by a friend/attorney at HSLDA. Stephens' insights into the personality of both the right and left wings of the movement have helped me both to appreciate and to effectively interact with the full range of characters forming the homeschool community in our state. I have urged other leaders to read and see whether Stephens' observations hold true for them -- to me, they appear to be right on target.

I read twelve books of history or biography, all in the range of late-17th to mid-20th century (from The Diary of Samuel Pepys -- this is not one for the kids! -- to The Last Nine Days of the Bismarck). Two were standouts -- Joseph Ellis' Founding Brothers, and Hagedorn's The Roosevelt Family of Sagemore Hill. I am still collecting biographies of Theodore Roosevelt, and the latter was a good read on the trip to the Republican National Convention.

Eight were classed as "literature", or ten if you count re-reading Lewis' That Hideous Strength and move the Diary of Samuel Pepys out of the history column. I'm helping Melanie keep ahead of John's "great books" curriculum, which is no slight task, even though it was a good excuse to re-read Sayers' The Nine Tailors.

The balance of the list reflected, as much as anything, the presence of a two-year-old who didn't want to go to sleep at nights. I often found myself walking the floor carrying son David, and reading things which were (a) light enough to carry without straining my hand -- no Baxter's Christian Directory here -- and (b) light enough to read without straining my brain. These tended to be mysteries (Erle Stanley Garner, Rex Stout, and Josephine Tey), a fair sample of C.S. Forester (I found his non-Hornblower books more profitable, actually), and a smattering of P.G. Wodehouse, Garrison Keillor, P.D. James, and Louis L'Amour.

I plan to expand on 2005's reading more as I go along. Here's to good art, with a good message, and reading no more dangerous than Aslan, the "not tame" lion.

Among these are life

A couple of pieces on the question of life and protecting it showed up today -- Matt May in The American Thinker, and my friend Paul Chesser in the Washington Examiner.

Paul offers an interesting idea -- if historically pro-abortion politicians are serious about reaching out to the pro-life voters, why not use that leadership to encourage some dialogue between the two factions?

Setting aside the flawed logic that abortion should be rare instead of banned altogether, crisis pregnancy leaders should take pro-choicers at their word and propose a few ideas. How about an arrangement to work together? They could offer to create co-counseling teams to advise each of their clients, so that all who seek help would receive both points of view. Crisis pregnancy centers, which are collecting more and more ultrasound machines, could provide free sonograms for patients of both facilities, which few abortion clinics appear to offer. As it is currently, neither group would be constrained in how they advise. Both organizations would still distribute the supplies (condoms from Planned Parenthood clinics; baby clothes from crisis pregnancy centers) that they've always provided.

Of course the question before the house in some respects may not be when does life begin, but rather, when should we be allowed to end it? My own contribution is this -- What if we simply applied the same test to abortion that we do for causing death in self-defense?

I think most pro-lifers would concede at least that point; it would harmonize with the liberal abhorrence of death by [judicial] decree, and it would naturally exclude the sex-selection, personal convenience, and ex post facto contraception cases which both sides (officially) criticize.

All it would require is the admission on the left that there are two people, not one, on the table. But that, I fear, would be too much to ask.

Homeschoolers are social! Page 1-A!

Some are finally beginning to get it. This story appears on the front page of the Durham Herald-Sun today (2/18/05)

Homeschoolers get social as more families go non-public

CHAPEL HILL -- Trash everything you think you know about homeschooling.

Forget the images of a small family sitting around a table, working out arithmetic problems. Toss out the thought of children whose only friends are their parents, brothers and sisters.

Today's homeschoolers say they are nothing like that.

A very positive article that interviews support group leaders in Durham, Chapel Hill, and Hillsborough. My own contribution followed the comments of Ingrid Towey, leader of the Christian Homeschool Association of Greater Durham:

... the Toweys' decision to home-school wasn't based solely on religion.

"I just thought it was the best thing for our children, to allow them to learn at their own pace," Towey said. "It allows them to bolster their weaknesses, and run with their strengths. Yet it very much feels like God has called us to home-school. He has enabled us to home-school."

But most families do home-school for religious reasons, more flexible academics or social concerns, said Hal Young, president of North Carolinians for Home Education.

"Most families, if you talk with them, will pick one as the main reason, but admit they've considered all of the above," Young said. "My wife and I are Evangelical Christians and want that to be reflected in our children's education, but we're definitely 'all of the above' in the fuller scheme of things."

More than two-thirds of home educators are involved in a state or local organization, or both, Young said.

"Home-schooling is an individual activity, but it's not solitary," he said. "The support is key."

Good enough to be everyday news

It is a sign of the maturing of home education in the public view when homeschoolers cease being human interest curiosities and move into the pages of the regular news. The basketball program of Forsyth Home Educators in Winston-Salem has made the transition: they are a regular item on the sports page of the Winston-Salem Journal, as in this matter-of-fact report from last Friday (2/11/05):

Prep Basketball Roundup
West's 32 points lift FHE to OT victory
JOURNAL STAFF REPORT

Boys
FHE 82, Stone-Eden 80 (OT): Kyle West scored 32 points, including the winning shot as the clock was winding down, as the visiting Forsyth Home Educators defeated Stone-Eden last night in a nonconference game.West hit a 10-footer in the lane with 1.2 seconds left in overtime. West also added seven assists.

Jake Claffee added 12 points and 10 rebounds for FHE (16-8), Colton Brown had 10 points and 12 rebounds, and Nathan Miller chipped in with 10 points.

Andrew Daniel led Stone-Eden (24-8) with 31 points, Hal Young scored 17, Joseph Daniel had 13 and James Fagge contributed 10.

Comment from Hal: I've never met my namesake in Winston-Salem, but I guarantee any scoring record he cares to set will never be challenged by my athletic prowess, past or present.

Young homeschool filmmakers praised at Festival

The November/December issue of Homeschooling Today includes a story by Carmon Friedrich documenting the first San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival, sponsored by Vision Forum.

Of the 130 film entries, 75 percent were submitted by homeschoolers: parents, children, or entire families together. First-time filmmakers competed with thouse who had been in the industry for many years. Thirty-eight semi-finalists were chosen in four main categories ...

This comment, though, caught my attention:

The youngest filmmaker, homeschooled Caleb McLeod Young, conceived the idea for his film, based on the book Christ in the Camp, when he was nine years old. With the encouragement of his family and the help of his homeschool history club, he made his five-minute film for $80. When the director of Time Changer, Rich Christiano, came to the podium to give a short speech, he pretended to take a call on his cell phone. "What, Lord?" he asked. "You want me to tell the folks you're more pleased with the nine-year-old who made Christ in the Camp than you are with Steven Spielberg?" The theater erupted in appreciative applause.

Caleb of course is my own son; the club is "Homeschoolers Unfolding History", a chapter of the N.C. History Museum's "Tarheel Junior Historians" organization, sponsored locally by the Public Library of Smithfield and Johnston County. The video was one of the 38 semi-finalists and was included in the "Best of Festival" DVD set.

Not being the youngest, perhaps, and having many worthy competitors in the young filmmakers category, my older son, John Calvin, has not attracted the same attention as Caleb. However, his HUH project, Independence Bound, was also honored as a semi-finalist and included on the "Best of" release, and both films are well-made, full costume presentations -- filmed at several historic locations around eastern North Carolina.

Dad's proud of both of them, of the Homeschoolers Unfolding History, and of Elaine Foreman, their sponsor at the library. Not to mention the regiment of mothers who sewed a closet full of Colonial garb (no coincidence that both of this year's productions are Revolutionary era, too).

NCHE in The Old Schoolhouse

Just received our copy of The Old Schoolhouse winter '05 issue and find NCHE represented in several places --

• Two photos of the NCHE Conference leading the article "The Value of Homeschool Conventions" by Amelia Harper and Deborah Wuehler, page 86
• Quotes from our conference VP Nancy St. Marie ("The 'best' conference is the one that meets the needs of the homeschoolers who attend. The best measure of this is that the [NC] conference is still growing and growing ... ") and my wife Melanie ("Over the years, the families that I have seen succeed at homeschooling are those with deep roots -- a strong philosophical and spiritual basis for their homeschooling. Convention is where you get that ...")
• Another photo of the NCHE Conference book fair on page 92, with the article "A Look Behind the Scenes of A Homeschool Convention" (Rhonda Barfield)
• Although it's not identified as such, the comments of filmmaker Rich Christiano in Amelia Harper's report on the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival (p. 56) refer to my 9-year-old son, Caleb, who directed one of the films in the competition.

(Amelia, btw, is an NCHE member living in Nashville, N.C., and the Media Editor of TOS.)

(Also btw, NCHE members can receive a 50% discount on The Old Schoolhouse magazine.)

NCHE in the News 2/2/05

Parents face school choices
Tours, open houses clarify regular public, magnet, charter, private options

Story by T. Keung Hui -- Raleigh News & Observer

Parents are sorting through the advantages and disadvantages of traditional and magnet public schools, charter schools, private schools and home schooling. Many schools are or soon will be accepting applications, and some want parents to make their decision by the end of this week. ...

Home schooling grows

Another nonpublic school option is home schooling, which is gaining in popularity. Hal Young, presidents of North Carolinians for Home Education, said various curricula and computer programs on the market are helping parents operate home schools.

In the Triangle, many support groups can provide parents help and offer youths extracurricular activities.

Young also said home schooling can be one-tenth the cost of sending a child to a private school, a key consideration when a family has multiple children.

"The major thing is, you're taking responsibility for your child's total educational experience," he said. "It takes a lot of time and a great deal of commitment."

So what about socialization?

The North Raleigh edition of the News & Observer included this interesting report Friday:

No home court advantage:

Undefeated home-schoolers are showing they can hang with high schools

They assumed they were playing a team with no home, no student body, no real practice facility. In the world of high school basketball, it is easy for private schools to schedule a game with a home-school team and expect a notch in the win column.

But the Raleigh Hawks have schooled the competition this season.

The Hawks, after dismissing the Lighthouse Eagles 88-76 on Tuesday night, in one of their few games against another home-school team, improved to 16-0 with one game left in their regular season. ...

Later this month, the team will head to the North Carolina Home Educators State Tournament in Greensboro, where they've finished second the past two years. Of the dozen home-school basketball teams in the state, eight make it to the state tournament.

(Actually, it's the "North Carolina Homeschool Basketball Tournament", which is sponsored by North Carolinians for Home Education. There will be twenty-six teams there, not just eight, competing in boys' and girls' varsity, JV, and middle school brackets. And they're not there to socialize, you understand -- just planning to play some serious ball in Greensboro.)

Here's to the players, parents, and coaches, showing once again you don't have to have government funding or institutional backing to make a mark in your chosen field. Or court.

If P then Q

The leaders and my fellow bloggers at the John Locke Foundation's blog The Locker Room have discussed the questionable value -- if not legality -- of incentive plans offered by every level of government to woo Dell Computers to North Carolina.

Now that the state, Forsyth County, and Winston-Salem have allocated megabucks of incentives for Dell's new plant -- over $37 million of it local -- the Winston-Salem Journal reported Sunday that modification to a high school next to the plant site could cost as much as an additional $4.4 million:

About $900,000 of that money would be the direct cost of creating a new driveway system to get students onto campus off of Glenn Hi Road and closing the entrance from Union Cross Road. Officials with the computer company have said they want to keep students off the road that Dell trucks will use every day. The other $3.5 million would be used to undo some of the damage done to the campus by the road.

The new driveway would go through at least one fully lighted and irrigated football field, would destroy some tennis courts and would put the entrance of the school far from the principal's office.

A $5.6 million capital spending plan for the school has already swelled to $7.9 million due to inflation and "computer changes". Some on the school board are not happy, calling increased expenditures "not fiscally responsible."

RTWT …

Hal Young 

NCHE in the News 1/7/05

Home-schooling popularity soars in North Carolina

Story By Amy Miller, Asheville Citizen-Times, 1/7/05

HENDERSONVILLE - Cindy Casoria can give plenty of advice to home-schooling parents. For the last 16 years, Casoria has taught her seven children reading, writing and arithmetic at home. Her four oldest have already graduated with a high school diploma given by her "school." ...

"I wanted to spend more time teaching them our values and the things we believe about life," Casoria said. "That's hard to do when they are away from you eight hours a day." ...

Like Casoria, parents choose to home-school for many reasons, said Hal Young, president of North Carolinians for Homeschool Education. A family may have religious or political reasons, and a growing number are increasingly concerned about how students in public or private schools behave, whether it's using illegal drugs or bullying ...

"At one time, home schooling was a radical departure," Young said. "But as the home-schooled population continues to grow, people are getting more exposure to people who home-school. And as people learn about support networks in place, it is something that becomes more accessible. People start to think, 'Maybe we should do this.'" ...

Finding a local support network is one of the first things Young advises parents to do when considering home schooling. Experienced homeschoolers can help parents pick a curriculum best-suited for their child. They can tell them the best extra-curricular activities at museums or parks. They know tutors who can help teach tough subject matter. They can also offer a sympathetic ear when things get difficult.

(Disclosure: I'm actually posting this on February 9 but backdating it to be in proper chronological sequence. I do wish people would get our name right.)