Unexpected Turn

Our lives have taken an unexpected turn in the past month. Blithly, I had spent a good deal of time and energy this summer preparing for this school year. I attended a classical education conference in Lancaster, PA, I took a three-week Latin class, I wrote lesson plans and a curriculum guide. My goal was to finish my preparations before going on vacation in August, and I met that goal. Then, just a day after arriving at my cousins' family reunion, and less than two weeks before teachers were to report for work, I got a call from the headmaster. St. Stephen's is in financial straits and I was being called upon to help. I was presented with the options of staying on full-time at a significant cut in pay, teaching half-time (also with a pay cut) or not teaching at all. The short version of what followed is--although I was willing, and even enthusiastic, about the prospect of working half-time, the pay would barely cover my expenses, so I resigned.

Although the school board had offered to allow each of the children to remain at the school, tuition-free, this did not seem to be the best choice. So, Stephen has been enrolled at Catonsville High. He finished his first week of school there and seems to be settling into that routine nicely. Elisabeth is at St. Stephen's, commuting with the Benners. William and Jesse are being homeschooled. The preparations I did for the classroom are serving me well for teaching the boys at home. The loss of income has me worried--and I do constantly remind myself that I shouldn't be, but that's the reason I'm up at this hour writing on my blog--but I'm also very content and happy to be busy at home again.