“I Don’t Collect Barbies.”

Left with little to nothing, a bright-eyed, five-year-old girl, Eden Foreman finally has her day. One of the most special and happiest days she has experienced in her young life. Eden and four of her siblings were adopted by single mother and prayer warrior, Vickie. Five years that has not come easily finally passed, although there was something missing in young Eden’s life. This changed once Eden shared her first birthday with her adoptive mother and siblings.

Each year, as Eden’s birthday rolled around, her mother bought her a Barbie VHS movie. Ecstatic, Eden cherished each video as year birthday passed. As the years rolled by, before she knew it, Vickie realized Eden was sixteen. She asked Eden if she was sure she still wanted to receive the Barbie videos for her birthday gift. “Of course!” Eden announced with certainty.

Collecting these movies have been an overflowing joy and blessing to Eden, especially young Eden because she focuses on how it changed her childhood. She explains that having these movies as a child has given her back a piece of her childhood that she felt like she has missed out on.

Eden explains that although when people first hear about her collection of Barbie movies, they laugh… Until she explains why she owns them all. Not only do they hold a special meaning behind the person that started by Eden these movies, (her mother,) but Eden explains that the lessons behind these movie plots obtain important beliefs.

“Barbie as Rapunzel” is one of the several movies that Eden owns. She says, “In Rapunzel, we see that she was kidnapped at a very young age and (the character) Gothel just worked her so hard. Every time I am done watching this movie I understand how important it is to tell the truth.”

“‘Barbie: Princess and the Pauper,’ teaches what it means to be friends and to work together” says Eden.

“Follow your dream. You can follow those dreams with your best friends. There will be hardships but you will get through them, together,” is one of Eden’s favorite lessons from “Barbie and the Diamond Castle.”

Ultimately, Eden reminds us that, “In these movies they all have something for the audience to take away from it, a “lesson.” The Barbie movies that Eden owns focuses on friendship, hard work, dreams, and other great skills young girls can take with them long throughout life; much like Eden has.

Not only have these movies helped shaped who Eden has become today, but she took it upon herself to bring these life lessons to other girls as well. Eden brought her movies to her church, showing different Barbie movies to the young girls and educating them on different lessons they can carry with them as they get older.

Eden spoke with me about her collection of thirty-two Barbie movies, and it is the movies alone that she collects. It is not so much the fact that it is Barbie (although Barbie is awesome) but Eden more so collects meaning, values, and life lessons, that can apply to anyone, young or old.

“I don’t collect Barbies.” Eden says, “I collect the movies and the lessons that they have taught myself as well as other young girls that will watch alongside me.”After spending some time with Eden and getting to know her. I have also come to realize she is very well loved around our college campus. Being the bright, bubbly, and selfless young lady she is, Eden very strongly epitomizes what it means to represent truth, friendship, hard work, and other admirable characteristics that she has filled so many lives with.

Homeschooler in the Real World

Emma Folts, a sophomore at Wheaton College, shares her experience about her transition into college and how homeschool has both helped and hindered her.
How has your homeschool experience benefitted you, especially in your transition into college?
I think the one thing that homeschooling did that was really helpful as I entered college was that it taught me time management. As a homeschooler I had the same freedom as a college student has to put things off during the day and go see a friend instead. Since I had that experience, I knew the cost of that.
Also, personal responsibility and accountability with assignments. I feel like a lot of the other students had more expectations for gentler grading and that the professor would give them retakes or extensions, but that wasn’t something that ever happened to me in school. That learning curve wasn’t added because I never had it the other way. I think another thing was that because I was homeschooled, I was familiar with the format of teaching and then studying on my own.
Did you see any issues with your transition socially?
I think that homeschooling had two ramifications for me socially. One was helpful, one was hurtful.
It was really helpful because as a homeschooler, I had spent a lot of time realizing and developing who I was as a person and learning to recognize people who were being themselves, and those were the people I sought out as friends. Friendship as a homeschooler takes a lot more investment. I knew I was choosier with my friends which made me a lot less anxious and a lot more content.
The only real negative impact of the social bit was that I was really used to getting to choose the time I got to spend with people. As a homeschooler I spent a lot of time with people, but that time was controlled by me. As a college student, I found that you can’t really control the time you spend with people and alone time is not really available. Learning to deal with that was a lot harder than anticipated.
Any last comments on homeschool and how it has affected your college experience?
I think homeschooling is really helpful, however it does take a slightly increased amount of advocacy with your peers when you’re entering into college. I think a lot of people come in with certain assumptions about homeschool, especially students. You’re going to get a lot of, ‘oh my gosh, you don’t seem like a homeschooled person!’ [You can’t] take that too personally and explain your experience so that friends can understand it’s an important piece of you, though it might not look like the homeschooling that they’ve seen.
My encouragement to anyone who is a homeschooler transitioning into college is to realize the benefit that you have having been homeschooled, and to realize that the bit of advocacy and explaining that you need to do with your peers is totally normal and that it’s not a big deal. Once they understand your experience, it’s not something I’ve experienced being looked down on for.