Starr Page Two

I was eager to try teaching her. I saw her as being wasted. I finally figured that I could not do any worse than the school district was doing, so I took her out of school at six, and home schooled her. She absolutely loved this! She eagerly learned to print her own name in one month. She was interested in everything I had to teach her. She loved to be read to. She loved to color, and paint. She loved to work with me on reading. She would sit down with me every day, and learned very well. She began to read at six years old. She loved to read! This was a real thrill to me! She had very limited ability in math, but did work patiently along with it. She worked on puzzles. However, her ability in reading was a real gift. From seven or eight on, she could be found, tucked away in a quiet place, reading a book! Again, she reminded me of myself as a child. I understood that well. I learned also, that if I wanted to suggest something that I knew she would bristle at, I could print it out for her, and she could read it, and think without bristling. That was a strong point for her, and a help to me. She took to printing me notes about how she felt about things, and this was very important to me, as she seemed unable to talk about feelings out loud. As the years went by, she became better able to tell me. (Now, in adulthood, she no longer writes me notes, but comes and tells me how she feels every time.) Home schooling was a powerfully fun and rewarding mother/daughter experience for Starr and me. She did not want to cooperate in household things, but she cooperated in being educated with enthusiasm and pleasure!

I had taught Starr about Jesus since she was tiny. She understood Bible stories very well, and as she grew older, she began to comprehend the concept of sin, and forgiveness, and a loving God. At twelve years old, Starr prayed with me, and accepted Jesus into her heart, to be her own personal Savior. She displayed joy, and I knew that she understood what it meant to be a Christian.

Our "household relationship" improved with time. I strained to look for positive points in her, so I could appreciate her. Starr would do her jobs on her chart, but did a much more willing job at the times she chose. She could be found, sweeping the kitchen floor at midnight, when she was a teenager. If asked, she would say that nobody was getting in her way. I certainly saw this logic, and did not see any reason for making a fuss. The floor was clean in the morning, and that was what was important to me. She would do the jobs that were written for her, but deeply resented doing any that were not written down. So I really limited what I would ask her to do. She was just a very different person.

Starr had a very lively imaginary life. She would ride a horse enthusiastically, swatting it behind her with her hat, whipping the reins, and hollering "get-up!" This was done while sitting on the couch. All of her siblings were in awe of her amusing abilities.

If a television program excited her, she would get up, and run in place. She didn't say anything, but the steady jarring irritated her siblings. I solved that by having her run behind the couch. She didn't mind. She would run, and run, and run, in one spot, while watching the rest of the program. I never did figure this out.