First, let it be said that going to formal school for 9th grade and the rest of high school is Berit’s decision. She is led to play the harp and she feels that her life’s work centers on both playing the instrument professionally and in teaching children to play the harp as well. She applied to a school with roughly 1200 applicants for 100 spots in the incoming 9th grade class, and was accepted. She plans going on to study at Curtis Institute of music in Philadelphia after high school. Its a good plan, and we support her in following her leadings.
It s a public school, and we will have to pay a little tuition because we live outside its district. The kids spend half the day in academics and the other half in music study. She will have much longer days than she was used to having at home, and plenty of homework besides what she does during the school day. I have my worries about that, but Berit feels up to the challenge and she wants to do it so much that I am shelving my concerns. They center on my belief that stress is not a very healthy thing for kids, but – I am reminded – she is 14 and embarking on this adventure of her own volition. I’m happy to move into a support role for her, but it is with some trepidation that I do it.
She won’t have a built in quiet time for reflection and worship each day. She will be outside the guarded education of home. On to being herself in the world, trying out one of her options for life. I am so deeply proud of Berit. I admire her sense of direction, her faith in her ability to do what is necessary to reach her goals.
The Feather and the Harp 