The Greatest Showman is a big hit in our house, especially with Beth. The songs, the images, the ideas have captured her imagination, and she is away in a world of her own, twirling and singing repeatedly ‘What if we reeeee-write the stars…?’

It’s lovely.

Every time she sings it, it reminds me about the notion of re-writing. It suddenly seems like a relevant concept. The actual stars have our permission to remain as they are – they’re grand – but when we consider our new life in Mexico, we realise that pretty much everything else will be needing a re-shape. So many of the habits, routines and obligations of our life here will be different in Mexico, and so we have the chance to start afresh, to do things differently if we choose to. We can leave behind what we don’t want to take with us, from ripped sofa covers and mouldy walls to ingrained habits that have never really fit our values. I feel an exhilarating sense of impending freedom. Maybe this is why criminals run away to faraway locations to reinvent themselves!

Relocation creates a natural break, after which we get a second chance to consider anew how we go forward and do everything required by life. Many of the supporting structures of our normal existence will be removed, and, at least at this point, there will be choices to be made at every turn before the next set of limitations begin to apply. It will take a bit of thought but we could live intentional, considered lives, instead of just fitting in with the status quo, or simply doing what we’ve always done. We could choose!

Firstly, there’s school. We have decided that at least initially, the most practical option will be to home-school our children. While to begin with I felt daunted by the enormous responsibility of providing an entire education that will equip my children for life as adults, I have now begun to see the positives. I like the idea of keeping them close in the early days while they deal with culture shock and learn a new language, I like the notion of being able to directly input into them what they need when they need it, to personally tailor their learning to their changing needs and tastes. To slow down and have the time to think about MY three children and their individual needs, instead of constantly running to keep up with the expectations of others and the pace set by the system.

We love our local school and it does a brilliant job. It is small, warm and friendly, and our children are very happy there. But just a little investigation has revealed a shock discovery: there are other ways to educate too. Lots and lots of other people do it all completely differently. Many children around the world don’t go to school at all. It must be a bit of a change of pace. Just pause for a moment and imagine a life with no school runs. I mean, let that sink in! No school runs! No early morning time pressure, no uniforms to emergency wash, no packed lunches to make, no homework to oversee. No leaping up from what you’re doing in a panic as you realise the time and the calling school gates. No constant rushing. No working to the same termly cycles every year with its bone grinding tiredness if someone else’s calendar dictates that your children don’t get a holiday until three weeks after they need one. These things alone would make a huge difference to our weekly family rhythms.

I have just started looking into finding a curriculum to teach from, and man, it has totally blown my mind. Like a land-lover’s first exploration underwater, a new world opens up: colour, diversity, richness, a kaleidoscope of life. It was so close to hand all along, and I didn’t even know it was there!

The way we do school in the UK, it turns out, is just one way of doing things, just one option, and there are SO many options out there! The world is a vast treasure trove of ideas, resources, methods, learning approaches. I have been so used to just leaving education to the professionals that I have never even really considered the question before – what should children learn in their years of schooling? What is important? What do they really need? What is a waste of time? How should they be taught, how should they learn? How can their hunger for learning best be fostered and encouraged? What should home-schooling look like? I can’t say I’ve nailed down the answer just yet but I am enjoying the horizon-bursting process of exploration.

I would love to hear your thoughts on these questions, please do comment below or via Facebook. Is there anything from your formal education that you felt really set you up for life, or was there anything you thought was missing?

Schooling is just one element of life that will look very different in our next season. Also in the queue for total transformation are: our wardrobes (we don’t currently have a lot of hot weather clothing…I wonder why!); food – shopping, cooking, our meals repertoire – furniture and possessions, home organisation, financial organisation, how we get around (hoping to ditch the car), healthcare, church life, our social lives, how we keep in touch with family… and no doubt many more things that haven’t even dawned on us yet!

Another big one is our work/life balance and the weekly family rhythms that fit around that. Do you still have weekdays and weekends if you’re not going out every morning to school and work? We don’t really know yet what our work will look like, but I think it is very unlikely to fit the same timetable it does now. I for one am hoping that hubby and I will be in it together, instead of somewhat stranded in separate camps.

I keep reminding Matt with a sense of glee that under our new terms, if he is no longer the nominated wage earner, not necessarily heading out of the door to a set job every morning, then there is no further reason why I should be mostly in charge of childcare and home management. That was a decision that made sense for this season and needs reassessing. Maybe we can divide up work outside and inside the home equally between us, who knows? It’s a new day. I might be wrong, but I sense my glee is not entirely reciprocated. Mwah ha ha!

At some point, whatever follows all these exciting re-imaginings will become the new norm, the minutiae of a different life that has merged into what is ordinary, taken for granted and no longer surprising. But for now, I dream the details and smile.