Hercules
Overwhelmed:
Dealing;with;Homeschool;“Burnout”
Have you ever heard the story of;the;labors;of;Hercules?;It’s the;ancient;Greek;myth;in which Hercules, the son of
Zeus, performs twelve nearly impossible
tasks;for;the;mortal;King;Eurystheus;in
exchange for immortality.
If you are a homeschool parent, go read
this story immediately. The parallels be-
tween your situation and Hercules’ are
striking.;You;probably;already;know;this
at;a;certain;level;;in;fact,;I’ll;bet;you;have
described your own homeschooling as
“the;labors;of;Hercules”;at;one;time;or;an-
other. My wife Missy and I certainly have.
Many are the times we have thrown up
our hands as if to say, “This job is impos-
sible—Hercules;himself;couldn’t;do;it!”
The main difference between Hercu-
les and us, of course, lies in the goals for
which we strive. While Missy and I are
merely trying to raise well-adjusted,
Do they?
Look at the story a little more
closely. It begins when Hercules, in a
fit;of;insanity,;kills;his;six;children
(no, this is not the part that
applies to us!). Hercules is
ordered by his father,
Zeus, to do pen-
ance for this sin
by performing twelve
labors for King Eurystheus. If he suc-
ceeds, Hercules will be worthy to enter
the company of the gods. That is, if he can
persevere in superhuman effort until the
end without tiring, then fame, renown,
and immortality will await him as the just
reward of all his labors.
In other words, Hercules sets out to
earn;a;good;reputation;by;working;really,
really hard.
When;I;look;at;Hercules’;situation;this
way, it resonates with my own experience as a homeschool parent. This
is because as I see it, part of my
task;as;a;homeschooler;is;to
prove to the world that I can
do;it.;I;can;take;a;job—the
education of a child—that
is usually performed by
the combined efforts of
hundreds of people with
millions of dollars and
decades of experience
and . . . do it better all by
myself. As I see it, part
of;my;task;is;to;prove;to
the world that I am just as
good;an;educator;work-ing alone as that whole
establishment is working together, and that the
product;of;my;work;is;as
good as anything graduating from the school down
the street.
In other words, part of my
task;is;to;earn;a;good;reputation
by;working;really,;really;hard.
Book;2014;•;Homeschool;Burnout;www.TheOldSchoolhouse.com
By;Adam;Andrews
Like;Hercules,;we;had;attempted—by;working;really,;really;hard—to;become;gods.
