Home School Assignment, 1995

The year was 1995. I gave my 15 year old son this assignment.

Write out in essay format where you want to be in 10 years (you'll be 25!). Include each of these catagories:

Physically: health, weight, looks, where you want to be living, where will you work, if someone were to pass you on the street just by looking at you they would say "There goes a guy who..."

Mentally: how much education will you already have, what will be occupying your thoughts, how will you keep yourself challenged, how will you continue to educate yourself

Emotionally: who will support you emotionally, what will you do to relax and unwind, how will you cope when things are stressful, who will you love, how will you keep yourself pure

Spiritually: what will you seek to fill your inner needs, how will you avoid becoming shallow to the needs of others, what role will God have in your everyday life, how will the Bible stay relevant to you, how will you allow crisis and minor irritations to draw you closer to God, how will you respond to the spiritual needs of others, how will others be drawn to God by observing you

Financially: how much money will you need to survive, how will you decide how much money is enough, how will you save and invest, who will you help, how will you decide who needs your financial help, what role will money play in your life

Family: your sister will be 23, your borther 21, what kind of relationship will you have with them, how will you be influential in their lives. your parents will be 47, what kind of relationship will you have with each of them, what about your extended family

You may add your own additional catagories:

In ten years, when I'm twenty-five, I hope to live in a good sized house with my wife. I think that two hundred dollars a week will be enough to support the two of us, plus extras like a TV and stereo system. I will have a savings and checking account and have direct deposit. I will save fifty dollars a week in my savings accound and put the rest in checking and buy groceries and clothes and other necessities. I hope to be able to help people who need financial help. I will probably support a child through Kids Alive or Compassion International. I would like to be able to loan my parents money if they need it (I probably won't have my money back from dad in ten years though).

I will spend some of my money on exercise equipment because I would like to be in good health. I hope to weigh about 175-200 pounds and be extremely good looking. When people see me I want them to say, "There goes a guy who respects himself and takes care of his body."

I hope people see me as a nice, outgoing, and friendly person who they feel comfortable around. I hope to have lots of friends who I can hang out with at the mall, go to movies with, have come to our house, visit at their house, or just talk to. I want to be able to go out with my wife a lot to fancy restaurants and to movies or even make a romantic candle light dinner and rent a movie. I hope my wife can come see me in plays, or even movies because I never want to give up acting.

I also don't want to give up on my education. I hope to have at least two years at Community College and take some classes at Kendall College of Art and Design. I will continue to educate myself by reading, watching movies, and studying things that interest me.

I will continue to read the Bible as I do now and hopefully more so that I can make wise decisions. I would also like to continue working in Sunbeams, possibly as the leader, or as a Sunday School teacher with the primary kids. I hope that they will see me as an understanding, patient person so that they will listen to me and be drawn closer to God.

I hope that I live a successful and happy life so that if my brother or sister have a problem or questions I can help them because I've worked through them. I would like to live near my parents so that I can talk to them and ask them questions. I hope that my dad and I can still go out to eat and to movies and stuff. I hope that the whole family can still meet at grandma's on Sundays and on holidays. I plan to still talk to Jon and hopefully my other cousins, too.

I hope that my wife and I are very close so that if we have problems we can talk them out with each other. If things get really stressful, I hope that we can relax and unwind together by going out to the movies or on a vacation together. I will love my wife very much, as well as my family and God.

Happy 25th Birthday, Oldest Son!