By 2007 life events had led me to a point where I could no longer ignore the fact that I was put on this earth to
1. learn how to confidently hear and follow my “Inner Voice of Wisdom” and
2. help others do the same.
Often I just call it “The Voice” but it goes by many names: Intuition, Instinct, Gut Feelings, Higher Self, Inner Knowing, Emotional Guidance and more. No matter what we call it or what we believe it to be, we’ve all “heard” it at one time or another – or THOUGHT we heard it and wondered.
Sometimes we listen and sometimes we don’t.
At pivotal moments in my life, this Voice has “come through” very loud and clear as it echoed in my head. Other times it has taken a more subtle form: gentle nudges, strong feelings, hunches, feeling “guided” to take a certain action and other hard to describe phenomena . But however my Inner Wisdom ultimately communicates with me, it always rings true in my heart and I have learned after 41 years of “experimentation” that it’s in my best interest to listen.
We are born tuned into The Voice, but the voices of our family, teachers and other “authorities” often steer us away from listening. Sometimes this is done subtly and sometimes with strong coercion, threats or punishment. By the time we are grown, most of us have learned to successfully ignore or drown out our Inner Voice of Wisdom with the external voices that hold power in our lives, our communities and in our culture in general.
What does all this have to do with Alternative Education or Partnership Parenting?
For me, choosing to approach education and parenting in this way is:
- a result of hearing (and finally following) my Inner Voice of Wisdom
and
- a means by which I can continually practice listening – and recalibrating my actions and choices to line up with my Inner Wisdom
Almost every external voice I’ve ever heard has said things like:
- “Children are too young and inexperienced to know what they want. They CAN’T know what’s good for them.”
- “Learning is difficult and can only happen when children are FORCED to sit and attend to ‘unpreferred’ activities.”
- “There are certain things EVERY child MUST know and they must learn it in the time frame and order in which ‘educational professionals’ prescribe.”
- “We must DEMAND respect from children (without reciprocating that respect). We should not be our children’s ‘friends’ and if we don’t discipline, punish and force our children to do certain things, they will never learn respect, responsibility or be motivated to do anything productive with their time.”
My Inner Voice of Wisdom has NEVER agreed with these ideas on education and parenting that seem to be dominant in western culture at large. The moment I made the decision to Unschool and try parenting without using punishment, the most profound sense of Peace came over me. I’ve learned over the years that this sense of Peace is a strong indication that my actions are coming into alignment with my Inner Wisdom that has never steered me wrong.
Of course doubts and questions have arisen as our family has made our way toward Unschooling and Partnership Parenting, but these have just been opportunities for me to practice quieting those external voices and tune into myself and my children to find the answer that is right for our family. And when things are still unclear I seek out experienced people on this path whose voices resonate with my my own Inner Wisdom.
Trusting children is a primary component to Unschooling and Partnership Parenting. In my experience, learning to hear, trust and follow my OWN Inner Wisdom is ESSENTIAL to learning to trust my children. How can we ever trust THEIR Inner Wisdom if we are unwilling or unable to trust our own?
So for me, Unschooling and working toward parenting in a non-coercive way can only be accomplished if I am CONTINUALLY tuning into my Inner Voice and recalibrating my actions to line up with that Voice.
Why RADIANT Living & Learning?
I’ve found that people who live from the inside out – meaning their motivations, choices and actions come from an authority within – these people GLOW. Their lights shine more brightly in the world. They RADIATE beauty and confidence and love and acceptance. We are drawn to these people because we want to be like them – maybe not precisely imitating the details of their lives – but we want to live our lives with the confidence and authenticity they do. There is a light in each of us that is trying to shine just as brightly.
We cannot live & learn “radiantly” when we are following someone else’s agenda. That just dims our LIGHTS or blocks them out entirely. When we are following our Inner Wisdom, pursuing our passions and fulfilling our life purpose, we SHINE.
At Radiant Living & Learning Events you will hear from Radiant Community Members who are creating the lives they desire by following their own inner voice.
If something you read on this website resonates with YOUR Inner Voice of Wisdom or makes you pause to reconsider the way you’ve always done things, the Radiant Living Community is sure to provide more inspiration and encouragement to confidently create the life you desire for yourself and your family.
We hope you will join us ONLINE or IN PERSON soon!
Heaps of Love,
The talks and discussions were a highlight of the weekend for my husband, Ken. He talked all the way home about the sessions he had attended. Other parents offered helpful insights into some of the challenges we were facing and we were able to implement these solutions successfully at home. As someone who was still new to the concept of whole life learning, being around like-minded people and mentors was reassuring for Ken.
Little Jasmine (then 2 years old) had a wonderful time playing and exploring with children of all ages. She especially loved staying up in the evening to make friends with a little brown and white toad that was hopping around outside the bunkhouse. Eating delicious smoothies made with healthy, natural ingredients gave her a fresh appreciation for the potential of dates and chocolate blended to perfection.
Maximizing the support attendees receive during the Retreat
