His face is weathered in the pictures I’ve seen, but his gaze is gentle and his eyes beam kindness.
I imagine that, in person, he was unobtrusive yet unavoidable. He seemed to have something of the divine twined through the fibers of his life.
As we all do.
He was a creator, a grower, a man interested in things and people finding their way to beauty and life.
And he always wore a little bit of nature on the collar of his coat. This won me over.
His name was George Washington Carver, and we have been studying him lately.
February is Black History Month, so I wanted to make sure the person we dove into made sense.
I have been taken aback by what I’ve learned alongside my children these last few weeks. Mr. Carver was essentially orphaned, rejected by society, refused at certain colleges, and without many necessities.
But he began where he was, with what he had, with whomever would share in it. He knew his purposes lied in his passions, and he never seemed to deter from the path he knew he was born to walk.
(Ah, that we would all have that same kind of knowing and persistence.)
An inventor, scientist, and agricultural expert – he came alive helping things come alive.
He was a true nurse for the nursery and enjoyed offering his green thumb to farmers and growers all around him.
As an African American in the late 19th century/early 20th century – he did all he could within the boundaries that were placed on black men of that day, but he also surpassed them. People of all makes needed his expertise. He pushed parameters in a natural and respectful and beautiful way, and it has been our pleasure to meet him this month.
I encourage you, grab a quick biography on George. You’ll be better for it.
Once a month we choose a new person to pursue. January’s was Antonin Dvorak, the composer. His life is worth a good study as well. He was a passionate believer that truly wanted to honor and exalt his Maker in all the matters of his life.
We listened to his compositions. We read a book about his venture to the United States. We listened to a podcast about his life. And we grew.
It’s all very simple, this home learning thing. Since the kids are publicly schooled these days, I don’t want our home studies to be bogging. We just kind of open the door to a guest for a month. We read their work, listen to their melodies, talk about their virtues, consider their lives and how they can enrich ours.
Sometimes my kids are uninterested and uncooperative. Never mind this, if yours do likewise. They’re gathering up the beautiful and pertinent bits they need. Stay the course, set the information on the table, and pray they are inspired by it somehow. The purpose isn’t knowledge retention. It’s exploration, growth, breadth, encouragement.
May your own dappling in these types of things spur you onward and upward to the things you’re being called into.
