Thoughts About Ambleside

When I share my Charlotte Mason 101 talk with groups, I state the following:

“In 2014, I was blessed to take a trip to Ambleside with my husband, Kent, and 5 other close friends. It became a seminal moment for me and sharpened my focus for spreading the word about CM and my commitment to mentoring others in this way of life.”

And when I finish my talk, I am inevitably asked to elaborate on that statement. And that is what I hope to share with you in this post. I did have the opportunity to return in 2018 and that trip brought its own revelations but will not be the focus of this article.

Charlotte first mentions Ambleside, this quaint village at the tip of Lake Windermere, in 1864.  She was 22 and it was then that this rare and famous picture was taken. (Apparently, she didn’t like to have her picture taken!)

She visited many times in the coming years and finally moved to Ambleside as her chosen spot for the teacher training college when she was 50.  It is another world, far away from the hustle and bustle of London. The beauty and refreshment offered by this unique landscape would be the perfect place to walk, observe, contemplate, and learn. The dichotomy between the city and the country was pronounced for me as we visited London on our final 3 days of the trip.

So yes, the beautiful landscape fully grabbed my attention – how could it not? The emphasis on nature study became, for me, more fully understood, as did the time it takes to enter into these observations. A once-a-week box that is checked off is not what she wanted for students. Rather, an immersion that keeps us attentive to even the smallest detail of God’s creation. Walking the same walks as Charlotte and her studentsshowed me that this is not a quick jaunt, but a thoughtful journey. The importance of getting away to somewhere that is peaceful and you can think was apparent. When I attend to nature study the way Charlotte intended, I see my outings as more meaningful and focused. And I can encourage others with my knowledge and help them develop good habits and strategies to begin living and learning in God’s great outdoors.

Also, when you walk the places that you have read about for so many years and see the things that someone you admire held in such high regard, you appreciate those places and things, too. I feel like I know Charlotte better having walked in her footsteps.

If I were to visit your house, one of the first things I would enjoy looking at would be your bookshelves. What do you read? What interests are revealed there? What is important to you? When you visit the Armitt museum, you can see and read the books that were on Charlotte’s shelves. So of course I spent some time in that spot, handling the books she treasured 100 years ago, noting the notations she made inside the covers, and observing what she was reading. I feel like I know Charlotte better having spent some time with her book collection.

While the wonderful Armitt museum holds her archives and you can find a plaque at the college that honors her, she seemed to be a fixture of the past. What could I do to help make her part of the future?

Well, I will say that I felt the Holy Spirit prompting me to continue in my already established ways of spreading the word through my blog, local book discussions, the Living Education Retreat, and our Truth, Beauty, Goodness community. But could I do more? I think that’s what I was hearing. Could this be my ministry? I think that’s also what I was hearing. Or maybe it was the realization that it had been my ministry all along, whether or not I called it that.

Do you know how many conversations I’ve had about our “Adorable Chief”, our heavenly Father, because of Charlotte Mason? I’m certainly not saying that you can’t have these conversations from other philosophies, but this one, based on the Gospels, beautifully walks you right up to Him and you realize that He is bigger than you ever imagined, our Savior of the world.

Since then that visit, I’ve mentored hundreds of moms, started Charlotte Mason classes (LEL), rescued some books, written for a new magazine, returned to Ambleside, enthusiastically shared whenever and wherever I am asked, and more. It’s amazing what happens when you see all of life as holy, when you acknowledge glory all around you. To a large degree, I have Charlotte Mason to thank for that.

I think I might go back again soon. Hmmmm…

Teaching from peace,

Nancy