Thoughtworthy (The Excuses Excuses Edition Ahem)

:: 1 ::

Yes, so it’s about time I put a post up. I know. I flew home from Dallas and only made it halfway through the unpacking before I was down for the count. I haven’t had a stomach bug in years. I am hoping that trend continues because that week was Not Any Fun.

As if that wasn’t enough, we followed tummy trouble up with Internet Issues. But now we’re back in business with a new modem! (Well sort of — I leave for Cincinnati on Wednesday, so…)

 

:: 2 ::

Airplane books are the best, of course! They feel like such a luxury to me. Or maybe it’s more the uninterrupted time that is the luxury. No matter. Next week, I have two long flights. (Hooray for no layovers!). Here is my book stack:

  

•  How Children Learn by John Holt  •  The Self-Driven Child by William Stixrud  •  Homeopathy for Mommies by Sue Meyer  •

I think I’m most excited about that middle one: The Self-Driven Child. For GHC, I’m giving a talk on masterly inactivity, and I have a feeling this book is on that very subject! We’ll see if I’m right.

 

:: 3 ::

If you missed it, Scholé Sisters Episode 34 made its debut:

What’s not to love? After all, it features Celeste Cruz!

 

:: 4 ::

Are you going to be in Cincinnati next week?? Don’t miss the Scholé Sisters Panel!!

This is going to be so. much. fun.

 

:: 5 ::

This month in 2017:

Since Visual Latin is on sale (best price of the year from now until April 11, 2018!), this is the perfect time to reshare this post. This is still how I do it. I have however, been considering an update. I’ve been trying out Getting Started with Latin for myself this year and I’m beginning to think that if you have zero Latin experience as a Mom, it might be the way to go, perhaps as a gentle introduction to Latin for yourself and your oldest child?

 

:: 6 ::

This week’s links collection:

• Metaphors can change our opinions in ways we don’t even realize from Quartz
  • A couple take aways:
    1. Choosing your metaphors is choosing your trajectory (so be careful).
    2. Atmosphere matters.
• Is This the Hardest Course in the Humanities? from The Chronicle of Higher Education
  • I don’t know about “let the undergrads decide,” but I do think this is encouraging.
• Intersectionality, the Dangerous Faith from National Review
  • There’s a new religion in town. Be aware. Don’t underestimate it.

 

:: 7 ::

Answering your questions:

• Question: You have written a very helpful post on an introduction to homeopathy. I’m also a Christian and have a friend who strongly feels homeopathy is not compatible with the Christian faith, and has books about it (mainly stating the non-Christian beliefs and methods related to homeopathy). I have not read them, nor do I know anything about homeopathy except that I know many Christians and non-Christians alike use it. Do you know of any reason it would not be compatible with Christianity? Thanks.
  • Answer: I am a firm believer in what Charlotte Mason called the Great Recognition — the idea that all truth comes from God, regardless of whether the person who discovered it knew Him or gave Him any credit. As an extension of this, we don’t, for example, dispose of Geometry just because Euclid was a pagan.With that said, it is true that some homeopaths have strange beliefs. Some are very Hindu, and some are just outright weird! I find that with some works, I have to sift through the teachings to get at the truth.But homeopathy is not unique in this regard. Allopathic medicine has proponents involved in the occult, materialism, and worse. Herbal medicine and essential oils also have a lot of new agey proponents. This has nothing to do with whether or not it works.Homeopathy is pretty simple. A mother tincture (usually 20% alcohol) is created using a specific substance and prescribed process. The original substance can be a mineral, a vitamin, even a poisonous herb. It is then methodically diluted and succussed (shaken, basically). No witchcraft required. 😉 Different levels of dilution are chosen based upon the strength of the illness or the strength of the patient.

    Homeopathy is a form of nano-technology. It used to be thought that “nothing” was left but the electronic signature (water can hold electrical charges, so this would make sense). But the question would be why it would work because water tends to lose its charge the second it touches something new. Why would this heal the body? We now know it’s because the remedies also contain nano particles of the original substance — we just needed to invent microscopes powerful enough to see them.

    A lot of homeopaths can get very woo woo when it comes to trying to match the remedies to the patient, but I don’t think that’s necessary. I use homeopathy almost daily, and I have found nothing to be safer or more effective with my family. 🙂

    As Christians, I think it is helpful to remind ourselves of a couple truths. First, that all good thoughts first belonged to God. There is nothing on this earth He didn’t create, and it is all for our help and pleasure. The fact that evil men corrupt these things doesn’t make them off limits to us. Second, that we are free from the world’s superstitions. Just because someone tries to make a system of medicine into, say, a Hindu experience doesn’t mean we have to buy into that.

    I don’t know if this helps or not? I hope it does, at least a little. 🙂