It’s not merely where you are going, but how you get there, that matters. And as we often find ourselves going places in cars, it is worth stopping to consider how we spend our car rides.
In this week’s episode, we welcome back to the podcast Mr. Kyle Blackmer for a discussion of the daily commute. Whether we carpool or ride solo, Mr. Blackmer helps us to reframe how we approach this daily endeavor which can easily become dead time at best, and dreaded time at worst.
Kyle shows us how the car, with the right attitude and a little creativity, can become its own classroom. He encourages us to think about how we can best use this time by praying, engaging in good conversation (at times mere fun, at other times more formative), listening to good music and books, and celebrating.
Chapters
- 00:45 Introduction: reframing the daily commute
- 3:20 How can we make carpooling more fruitful for our sons?
- 5:43 The car as a classroom: the first and last period of the day
- 6:22 Four modes of teaching in the car
- 6:45 Prayer, especially the Rosary, especially in the morning
- 9:28 Car as a place for friendship, shared life
- 10:55 Conversation in cars
- 16:20 The art of asking good questions and listening
- 17:15 Tuning into the boys in front of you
- 19:16 Setting guidelines for your carpool
- 21:10 Being intentional about what you listen to
- 25:35 Audiobooks and classic rock
- 27:50 Celebrating in little ways
- 31:20 Finding moments for minor points of correction
- 33:30 Advice for solo commuters
- 35:50 The last three minutes: preparing for your return home
Recommended Audiobooks for the Road
The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart
Seabiscuit by Charles River Editors
Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
Treasury for Children by James Herriot
Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs
The Once and Future King by T. H. White
The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells
The Complete Father Brown Collection by G. K. Chesterton
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter Miller, Jr.
Also on the Forum
On Home as Social Hub: The Importance of Hosting Our Sons and Their Friends with Tom Royals
Friendship for Fathers: John Cuddeback on Living and Teaching the Art with John Cuddeback
Sarah Mackenzie on the Read-Aloud Family with Sarah Mackenzie