I just returned from a trip to Uganda, my seventh trip there
and my first alone. On all the other trips, my son, who is 16, and sometimes my
daughter, who is almost 21, went with me. I knew it would be different being
there by myself, but it was a lot harder than I expected! (My husband has never
been because of his job, but one day I’ll get him there!)
We’ve homeschooled for thirteen years, and one of the main
reasons we started on that journey was to expose our kids to travel. I was
fortunate enough as a child to travel extensively with my grandparents – one of
the perks of being an only child and living three miles away from them – and I
have always thought that I learned much more from those trips than I ever did
in school. I certainly remember a lot more of it than I do algebra!
Before I started my non-profit, we had still done a lot of
traveling. We decided a decade ago to give our kids a trip instead of gifts for
Christmas, and we usually go to somewhere tropical to get out of the North
Carolina gray December. As part of our homeschooling, we’ve gone to Washington
DC several times, Yorktown, Jamestown, the Outer Banks, and all over the
Southeast and Florida. My son and I have stayed in London twice, for several
days, on the way to Africa. I took my daughter with me to Chicago for BookExpo
one year, and we did the convention in the morning and fun stuff in the
afternoon.
When I started traveling to Uganda, it made perfect sense to
take my son with me, plus it would have been hard for my husband to take care
of him and work for two or three weeks at a time before he was driving. My
friend who lives there homeschools (she has 13 Ugandan children!), so my son
did school when the other kids were working, or went with me to the slums,
babies home, or hospice that we work with. Through those trips, he’s discovered
a great love and real talent for East African languages, and will be returning
during his gap year to continue his studies.
My daughter has been five times, and is getting a minor in
African Studies because of her love and understanding of the country. Both of
the kids have seen and done things that have literally changed their lives
during their time in Uganda, and both have really connected with friends and
organizations there that they will know their whole lives. If my daughter could
have anyone at her wedding, it would be the dozen or more people she loves who
live there.
My mom frequently comments on the hardships of traveling
with children. In fact, this time, she was happy for me because I could
“relax.” (How doing three weeks worth of work in two weeks, since everyone
stayed home, constituted relaxing, I’m not sure!) But honestly, I absolutely
love traveling with my kids and always have.
Sure, when they were younger, there were challenges. Strange
beds, eating out all the time, ears not popping when we flew (then there was
the time my daughter threw up on the lady next to us on the plane… which I’d
rather not revisit!). Packing, especially when my son was four or five, was a
challenge. But if you do it regularly, you and the kids both get into a groove,
and by about eight my kids were packing for themselves.
The thing is, when you travel with your kids, especially to
somewhere new that has great historical value, you get to watch them catch the
little spark of excitement that becomes a fire of passion for learning. My son
loved the Tower of London so much on our first visit that it’s the only thing
he asked to do on our second visit – in all of London, including riding the
Eye, watching the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, and eating some
great food. You can’t get that kind of excitement from a book, no matter how
well written.
The other joy is that you have a lot of time to just talk.
So much of our lives, even for homeschool families, is spent driving around,
doing errands, doing chores, and visiting friends, that it can be hard to
really know your kids. I’ve always used time in the car for chat, but once
they’re driving themselves, you lose that. But twenty-nine hours of plane and
airport travel? Communication gold! Having lunch after spending three hours
walking through a historic building or visiting families in the slums? You’ll
find out things you never knew about your child and how they think.
I know that, in this economy, traveling is an expensive
proposition. But you don’t have to go far. Most of us live within a hundred
miles or so of something historic. Or you could adopt our Christmas idea, and
take a family trip with the money you use for gifts. (We still do stockings,
but no presents.) Our trips aren’t
overly expensive. We drove to my aunt’s in Florida one year. We have exchanged
our very inexpensive timeshare several times. We have done a few big things,
like cruises, but the main goal is just to spend the days as a family, having
fun, and getting better acquainted.
Travel is also a great investment in your children’s future.
There is nothing that teaches them about different cultures, about how great
America is (and how rich, regardless of your economic status), and how amazing
different people are than traveling to another country. Who knows? Your child
may discover an affinity for a language he’s never heard before, like mine. Or
maybe find a fulfilling career by seeing opportunities in other places. At the
very least, your family will make memories that will last a lifetime.
Disclosure: This guest post is brought to you by a book tour. I did not receive financial compensation for posting.
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