Santayana’s aphorism that ‘those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it’ is often forgotten. These are shoes collected from those killed in Auschwitz, a reminder of the results of a totalitarian/control (fixed) mindset of Nazi/leftist ideologists who operated under a simplistic blame motive for selfish gain, tossing all accepted values to the wind. How did they get there? Our western world has had decades of wealth and opportunity, to the extent where much of it now happens almost by default. Our culture is to provide for all our children’s needs, make things easy for them, and protect them from any difficulty. What have been the outputs of this approach? While the story of the Ik Tribe is sickening, we are guilty of similar atrocities. Our abortions in the USA since 1973 are over 50 million, some say as high as 76 million. How can we point at Stalin and Hitler, or Mao ZeDong for their hateful acts while we condone abortion on this scale, all the while showing sympathy for pedophiles, drug pushers, sex traders and even traitors? Something is seriously wrong.
Values
In a life of receiving we have forgotten how to give. Similar to the microcosm of Turnbull‘s Ik tribe in Africa, where through continuous aid they forgot to take care for themselves, and in turn because they did not need to function as a society for their needs, they turned wickedly selfish. Look at southern Africa, who have received around $63 billion in aid every year for decades. They have nothing to show for it but militia, poverty and hatred. Timothy warns us of the time when we will become lovers of their own selves, covetous, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers, false accusers, fierce, and lovers of pleasure. This is a reflection of our society today. Christ taught us that it is better to give than to receive. This does not translate into giving money or gifts, but to living a life of adding-value and sacrifice. This is the first keystone lesson for your children and is the bulwark of our civilization.
Character
In a similar vein, we have grown accustomed to looking to the government to solve our problems. This communistic panacea has proven farcical and has brought destruction to those idealists who bring about revolution in its name. Dr Dweck explains this as a ‘fixed mindset’, and shows how this negatively impacts those who buy into this paradigm. It is a feeling of entitlement, for whatever reasons. The truth is that no one is entitled to anything, but that by taking ownership for one’s own destiny with a ‘growth mindset’ you are more likely to be successful. This requires a strong work ethic and self discipline. Peter Senge’s learning objectives include 3 keys: self motivation (aspiration), reflection of self (feedback), and understanding complexity. These have all been lost in our school system, leaving us with a lack of understanding, and dealing with issues at a level of ‘low resolution‘ and political correctness that gives rise to radicalism. So what is self-discipline? MEganize refers to this as ‘conquer self’. Catholics refer to the heavenly virtues which include fortitude (vs sloth), love (vs lust), temperance (vs gluttony, wrath), and prudence (vs greed). These are all aspects of self control. Take ownership for your life. Essentially the concept is to sacrifice the now for later, bigger benefits through hard work. II Peter 1 says “… giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness…” This then is the the second keystone lesson for your children.
Face the tiger
In our time of luxury, perhaps we have lost our ability to endure. “If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.” (Proverbs 24:10) We cannot buckle under stress. This requires both physical health and strong mental and spiritual health. Sin causes stress. Self-pity is a prime driver. Paul explains that we need to keep God first. Have a sense of humor and calm as you face challenges, and learn to endure hardness. So, allow your children to face challenges and hardships in a safe environment without running to protect them, or even to show sympathy (as this breeds self pity). This discipline is best found in sport and learning, and facing your fears and weaknesses. Work hard, play hard. This builds character. This is a third keystone lesson.
Pruning
We are told that what we sow we shall reap. This applies to how we live our life, and is a natural principle of consequence, but there is more to it. Pruning is also an essential element for our lives. These two concepts are essential to grasp.
Many politicians refer to the dangers of ‘global warming’ and pollution (how can we control the weather!), and yet ignore a very real dangers of far greater magnitude. In Genesis, we are told to rest on the 7th day. Everyone now ignores this, but the macro consequences are dramatic. We have driven our land to such lengths to produce food that we have forgotten to rotate our crops, or let lands lie fallow at least every seven years. This depletes the nitrogen content in the soil which holds moisture. Over time the land becomes infertile and turns to desert, and even fertilizers will not help. Deserts are increasing while production is slowing. The same applies to our seas. To reestablish the land will require real sacrifice and self control, two things that are not evident in politics. Ironically, this reflects the ‘growth’ mindset. ‘What you sow you shall reap’ suggests adding value (true ‘giving’). There are many similar instances where we ignore real issues because change would be unpopular. We need to sow to bear fruit.
Pruning runs in a similar vein. I was interested to learn that farmers starting a vineyard are wise to forego at least two seasons of grapes in order to produce good vines. The grapes are cut and left to the soil to nurture the root system. Pruning is a continuous process that optimizes output. So what? Our lives are the same. We are inundated with unnecessary information, diversions and projects. We must translate this into focusing on the important, using your goals and priorities as a guide. Look for truth, wisdom and lasting value. Focus on bearing fruit. Avoid anything that is illusionary, meaningless or arbitrary. Prune these out of your life, ongoing. MEganize refers to this under the concepts of ‘focus on output’, ‘less is more’ and ‘adding value’.
Humility
On reflection you should find that these elements are missing in our education and society as a whole. Politics has distorted the truth by appealing to our indulgences and not to wisdom. Any fool can promise the world, making things easy, but nothing can be achieved without sacrifice, hard work, and a strong shared culture working to the right (Godly) principles. The desire to learn stems from humility.
Humility is the mother of all virtues, especially before God. If your children learn arrogance, the fear and wisdom of God will be lost, and so will their lives. (Proverbs 1:7) Arrogance is a fixed mind set that leads to low resolution short-cuts and assumptions that will fail.
Challenge your children in these areas. This will give them meaning in life. Using these principles, MEganize offers homeschooling solutions to our problems on a micro and macro level. The choice is yours. Make it a wise one. Visit the online homeschool portal here.