Asaph's living transcript / written for Asaph's graduation

So there I was, trying again to teach Asaph how to read. He could not or would not sit still. He was constantly wiggling and moving. 

“He is not listening” (or so I thought). I tried teaching him with piles of beans and trays of flour and he enjoyed that a little more, but his letters were always backward. I tried threatening. I tried rewarding. Nothing worked. He was driving me crazy. I spoke to another mom who had a boy as busy as Asaph. 

She said, “stop trying to teach him to read, work on other stuff that he’s good at and come back to reading in a year or two.”

All of our children have different learning styles and today I am going to talk about how Asaph learned in a hands on, kinesthetic way. Reading, writing, mathematics, health, theology, and biblical studies, culinary arts, agriculture, social studies, language, physical education, drama, music, technical skills, automotive, construction and interpersonal communication.

1. Vancouver,WA , Idaho

We lived in Vancouver, WA until Asaph was 6 years old. We read for hours every day, Asaph learned how to crochet, beginning farming, cooking, sewing and making music. He began Saxon math which he would stick with until finishing up with Conn academy at the age of 17. We studied the civil war through sunlight curriculum and traveled to some of the civil war sites and places of historical significance.

We moved to Oklahoma for 6 months and began our first remodeling job. 

We moved onto land in Idaho and Asaph studied Latin, Spanish, logic and skiing, Bread making, Kombucha, Kefir, and sauerkraut. We made our first of many family videos. We also increased our study into theology as a whole family. While we were in Idaho, two children joined our family through adoption.

Idaho was a great learning experience for all of us. The children could finally be loud and crazy. They were the Swiss Family Robinson children. We raised milking goats, and other farm animals.

Then we moved to Chile. We went there to preach the gospel to the church (including ourselves) and to the un-saved with our words, lives, relationships and music. This was total immersion Spanish language and culture. It was our intention to BE Chileans while we were there. We ate like them and shopped like them and tried to learn their language. We loved those Chileans! This made us very approachable to them and they came to our gate and into our little cabin every day sometimes until well after dark.

Asaph worked with us on starting a church in our cabin. And starting a donut business- cooking them over a fire in our wood burning cook stove. 

He and some of his siblings designed and built beds that hung from the ceiling chains, and triple bunks- fitting 12 people in a 400 sq ft. cabin with room to share tea and dinner with company. Asaph and Zuriel practiced laying beautiful designed slate tile floor and bathroom walls. 

It was good for all of us to live without power using an outdoor sawdust toilet, no fridge, no running water, no showers. Asaph worked at a bakery and worked with Senor Claudio building his house. We were in Chile for a year and a half.

Then we moved back to Vancouver, WA, USA. Aasph studied Spanish grammar, writing, thinking and making cheese cake. He studied KungFu and apprenticed at a dairy farm. Ephraim and Asaph added laying laminate flooring helped install concrete countertops and lived on site doing a remodel for some friends.

Asaph joined the worship team at our church gathering, while continuing to play bass (electric and stand up) and guitar in our family band and beginning to add singing and songwriting to his creative portfolio. While in Vancouver he began studying A+, a business, computer hardware operating systems and networking class and he grew in technical skills.

Then we moved to Oklahoma.  Ephraim and Havilah came first, and then Asaph. They remodeled the house that we were all going to live in, from; demolition to wiring, plumbing, wall building, foundation work, texture and paint, tiling, everything. Asaph worked with Pastor McCarthy on a project learning auto body work and some brakes, wheels, belts etc. 

Here Asaph joined a dance class and then continued on his own learning Swing dance with Zuriel. He worked backstage at Theater Bartlesville and continued making music and dramatic videos. The highlight of Asaphs educational endeavors here has been the Speech and Apologetics classes that he took in Tulsa. There he made and introduced us to some new  and life-long friends.

Immediately after graduation from high school Asaph and Havilah returned to Chile as missionaries with YWAM.

I have shown how Asaph got his education but how did He ever learn to read? Well, a year or 2 after I had given up teaching him to read, I did sit down again with him thinking to start where I had left off, but he was already reading at an advanced level for his age and has been reading classics and heady books ever since.

Asaph has so much to learn ! but he’ll be okay because after 17 years he’s finally able to admit it and live in repentance in the light of God’s face. 

Thank you