Travel Resources - Home Educators Association of Virginia

The Value of Travel Dr. Joel OrrTraveling to other lands, oreven within our own country,is certainly fascinating.Being there is entirely different fromreading about it, or even seeing it invideos. And most importantly, wegain new insights into ourselves.Elsewhere in this issue, thereare accounts of amazing and wonderfultrips made by homeschoolers.Everything from preparation to budgeting to scheduling torecording—each phase of the trip is purposeful and illuminating.And when we are “on the road,” living on our preparations, welearn through experience whether we did it right or missed somethings.Of course, all journeys are full of surprises—not just unpredicted,but unpredictable. So we must rest in the Lord as we go,even more than we do at home, if we are to cope with the challenges.As always, we can’t help what happens to us—we can onlychoose how we respond to it.Even trips to wilderness locations will involve meeting peoplewho are different from us. Perhaps they live in the far-offplaces we are visiting, or maybe they, too, are travelers. If wepray, and allow our steps to be ordered of the Lord, we’ll meetprecisely who we are supposed to. We will have an opportunityto be a blessing to them, and they to us.How do we appear to these strangers? Are they curiousabout homeschooling? About life in the Lord? What can we tellthem? What can we learn from them? Many a chance meetingon a family expedition has led to lifelong friendship. The onlypreparation we need make for such encounters is to be in theLord, to be walking with Him, and asking Him to lead us onlyto his appointed meetings.I am moved to throw in a “word to the wise” here, whichI trust will be sufficient: It is particularly important to be awareof the whereabouts of all of our children at every moment, especiallyin strange places. In the most concrete ways, the Devilgoes about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Letnot the charm of the view, the land, and the people lull us intolowering our standards of family safety; on the contrary, we mustbe even more vigilant than we are at home.Besides the places and views, there are subtler things tonote. How do people speak? Is it English, but with a differentaccent, and perhaps different words for some things? Right herein the US, there are still plenty of regional differences in wordsfor common objects. Did you know that in the Midwest—especiallyMilwaukee—what we call a “water fountain” is knownas a “bubbler”? And if you ask for a soda, you’re likely to getclub soda—what you wanted was probably what they would call“pop.”My favorite activity when visiting other countries, or evenother states, is to spend time with local people. That’s when Ifeel I learn the most. As they share about their lives, and I shareO wad some Pow’r the giftie gie usTo see oursels as others see usIt wad frae monie a blunder free usAn’ foolish notionWhat airs in dress an’ gait wad lea’e usAn’ ev’n DevotionRobert Burnsabout mine, I find out what strikes them as different and interestingabout me. That helps me see myself in a different light.If you are traveling places where other languages are spoken,make an effort to learn at least a few words of each language, like“please,” “thank you,” and “where’s the bathroom?” It’s thecourteous and respectful thing to do. You are a guest in someoneelse’s country, and by showing that you took the trouble tofind out how to say a few things, you demonstrate your eagernessto learn about them. Most people find that flattering, andwill reach out to you even more openly in consequence.If packing space allows, having small gifts from your hometown can be wonderful relationship-cementers with people youmeet. Even postcards will be appreciated.It is a wonderful blessing to travel as a family, and tremendouslyeducational. Take advantage of every aspect of yourtrip—and be sure you travel in the Lord. Dr. Joel Orr and his late wife, N'omi, homeschooled some of theirsix children in the early seventies. They traveled with them all overthe U.S., as well as to England and Israel. Dr. Orr's consulting andspeaking activities as an adviser to users and makers of engineeringsoftware continue to take him all over the world.“Having spent my childhood in New York, Israel, and PuertoRico, I have a deep appreciation for the different perspectives affordedby visiting or living in other countries—further enhanced bylearning the local language,” says Joel. “I strongly recommend traveland language study to all homeschoolers.”Joel Orr can be reached at joel.orr@gmail.com.24 l The Virginia Home Educator