I am proud that I had the guts to start homeschooling in high school, and I consider it an accomplishment. I’d always had the idea of homeschooling in the back of my mind, partly because I was sick of spending so much wasted time in a classroom and partly because it would allow me to play tennis more. However, I was afraid some aspects of homeschooling would be too hard without the everyday presence of a teacher. Being confident enough to try homeschooling anyway, and confident enough to try it when many people think it is different and weird, is something I take pride in.

So far, I’ve gotten so much more out of homeschooling than I did regular school. I have much more time on my hands to practice tennis and spend time doing what I want. No longer do I have to sit, bored, in a class while my peers ask silly questions they would’ve known the answers to if they’d been listening, or while the teacher pops in a movie for everyone to watch. No longer do I have to sit at lunch listening to other kids’ chitter chatter when I could be out doing something meaningful with the time life has given me. There is one word to describe how I feel now – free.
My friends have told me that people have gossiped about me, said it’s strange that I’m homeschooling. But I don’t care; when I drive by the high school and see all those students’ cars parked out front, a rush of joy comes over me, for I know I’ve made the right decision. The ones there, in that school, are the ones who are missing out. While they are kept in that building as if in a jail, I’m out reading under an oak tree, running through fields, playing tennis to my hearts’ desire---I am the rebel bird who has broken free of its cage.