Russian Family Cut Off From Modern World For 40 Years

Agafia and Karp Lykov shortly after being discovered by geologists. Photo via Smithsonian Magazine

Students using our Modern US and World History study guide will find this story to be absolutely fascinating. Smithsonian Magazine recently featured an article about a family in Russia who had gone into hiding in 1936 following oppressive purges led by the Bolsheviks. The family, the Lykovs, were Old Believers a very traditional sect of Christianity that had been persecuted since the reign of Peter the Great. Under Peter many Old Believers retreated to Siberia, living in harsh conditions but able to worship with some measure of freedom. Under the Communists the persecution took on an even more extreme form and the Lykovs retreated further into the frozen tundra of the north. When they were discovered in the 1970s they were unaware of major events like World War II and the lunar landing. 

The Lykov's home. Photo via Smithsonian Magazine

The Smithsonian Magazine article is an astounding and even heart wrenching read, and I hope you enjoy it.

For those of you interested in learning more about this turbulent time period, the world wars that allowed Stalin to take power and the consequences of this, check out these books:

World War I: The Great War

Primary source documents that relate to preparation for the war, life in the trenches, postwar struggles, conflict over the Fourteen Points, and several historians' interpretations of the war.

World War II: The European Theatre

Excepts from radio broadcasts, news accounts, photos, letters and journals. Tells the story of our troops landing on the beaches and flying bombing missions over Europe, along with words from leaders on both sides of the war.

The Yanks Are Coming by Albert Marrin

Marrin relates the gripping story of how the Yanks "came over" to aid the European Allies and turn the tide in the first Great War. How the United States mobilized industry, trained doughboy soldiers, and promoted the war at home makes for fascinating reading in one of the few books on this topic for young adults. The human cost of the war is poignantly related in tales of the action at Chateau Thierry and Belleau Woods, in the air with the daring men of the Army Air Corps, and with the Lost Battalion at the Battle of Meuse-Argonne. From the sinking of the Lusitania to Armistice Day, Marrin tells the heartrending and inspiring story of the "war to end all wars." Illustrated with maps and photographs.

Stalin, Russia's Man of Steel by Albert Marrin

When Joseph Djugashvili was born the son of a poor shoemaker, few suspected he would rise to become one of the twentieth century's most ruthless and powerful dictators. Enamored as a young man with the revolutionary politics of Lenin, he joined the underground Marxist Party and began his pursuit of power by leading strikes and demonstrations. Six times he was exiled to Siberia for his illicit activities, escaping many times despite below freezing temperatures and on one occasion an attack by a pack of wolves. His instinctive ability to command authority and divide the opposition through lies and deceit set him on a path he would follow to become Russia's most absolute dictator. He was never reticent to shed innocent blood in the pursuit of his own ends, and he carefully orchestrated demonstrations that brought about massacres that he then used to his own revolutionary ends. His vision was far reaching, and while his initial purpose was to establish a Soviet socialist state his larger goal was world domination. Ultimately responsible for the deaths of over 30 million—13 million alone in the Ukrainian famine he caused—Stalin's life is a sober and heartbreaking account of the reign of terror suffered by countless millions at the hands of one man.

All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Marie Remarque

Contemporary classic confronting the morality of war. Story of young German soldiers during WW I "on the threshold of life, facing an abyss of death..." Considered one of the greatest war stories ever written -- and one of the classics of antiwar literature -- Remarque's 1929 masterpiece tells the story of young Paul Baumer, who enlists in the German Army in World War I and takes place with his comrades in the trenches. For mature readers.

A History of US, An Age of Extremes by Joy Hakim

An Age of Extremes covers the time period 1880-1917. For the captains of industry men like Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, J. P. Morgan, and Henry Ford the Gilded Age is a time of big money. Technology boomed with the invention of trains, telephones, electric lights, harvesters, vacuum cleaners, and more. But for millions of immigrant workers, it is a time of big struggles, with adults and children alike working 12 to 14 hours a day under extreme, dangerous conditions. The disparity between the rich and the poor was dismaying, which prompted some people to action. In An Age of Extremes, you'll meet Mother Jones, Ida Tarbell, Big Bill Haywood, Sam Gompers, and other movers and shakers, and get swept up in the enthusiasm of Teddy Roosevelt. 

You'll also watch the United States take its greatest role on the world stage since the Revolution, as it enters the bloody battlefields of Europe in World War I. Hakim's history is vivid and engaging, told in story form. Somewhat biased at times, but certainly not enough to disregard this book. Recommended for use along with the Basic History of the United States series. 

A History of Us: War, Peace, and All That Jazz by Joy Hakim

From woman's suffrage to Babe Ruth's home runs, from Louis Armstrong's jazz to Franklin Delano Roosevelt's four presidential terms, from the finale of one world war to the dramatic close of the second, War, Peace, and All That Jazz presents the story of some of the most exciting years in U.S. history. With the end of World War I, many Americans decided to live it up, going to movies, driving cars, and cheering baseball games aplenty. But alongside this post-WWI spree was high unemployment, hard times for farmers, ever-present racism, and, finally, the Depression, the worst economic disaster in U.S. history, flip-flopping the nation from prosperity to scarcity. 

Along came one of our country's greatest leaders, F.D.R., who promised a New Deal, gave Americans hope, and then saw them through the horrors and victories of World War II. These three decades-full of optimism and despair, progress and Depression, and, of course, War, Peace, and All That Jazz-forever changed the United States. All of Hakim's books are filled with an abundance of pictures, graphs, maps and a chronology of events that are all very useful. Recommended for use along with the Basic History of the United States series.

You may also enjoy: 

December 7, 1941 a date that will live in infamy

Remembering Veterans' and Armistice Day

History Points: The Cuban Missile Crisis

Call for Submissions!

We're looking for submissions! Do you have students who are really proud of their BFB history notebooks? Have you found ways to customize your children's notebooks? Instead of notebooks do you use other mediums like computer files, websites, or blogs? If so, we would love to feature your work on our blog! Email me your submissions at rebecca@bfbooks.com. Simply send me a photo of your best notebook pages, a link to your blog, a PDF of computer work, or any other sort of file that shows your student's work. Use the subject line: "Student Notebook Submissions". I will be accepting submissions for the next week and look forward to featuring some of your work on the blog! This is a great opportunity for your students to show others what they're working on and to give other parents and teachers ideas on how to notebook and effectively use the notebooking assignments in our study guides! I can't wait to see what you all submit!

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King found buried under parking lot!

Richard III

Yesterday a story broke in England and it's an exciting one for anyone studying medieval history! The remains of Richard III, the last Plantagenet king to rule in England have been found. What makes this all so interesting is that the archeologists went on a treasure hunt that would rival any Indiana Jones storyline. Using historical documents, carbon dating, 500 year old maps, and even DNA testing, these archeologists have positively identified a skeleton as this widely reviled king.

Below you can watch two videos from the University of Leicester detailing the search for the remains and how they used historical accounts and detailed cultural knowledge to plan their dig.

The search for Richard III, the archaeological dig

This video shows the lengths to which the archaeologists had to go to determine if this was in fact Richard III. Using contemporary descriptions of the king along with carbon dating and DNA evidence they have been able to prove "beyond a doubt" that the skeleton is in fact this long-missing king. 

The search for Richard III, identifying the remains

You can read more about the search here and see a photograph of the entire skeleton. This discovery has even allowed a specialist in craniofacial identification at the University of Dundee to create a reconstruction of what Richard would have looked like! You can see that here.

I find all of this to be so fascinating. What do you think? If you're interested in learning more about Richard III, check out our Medieval History Through Literature study guides for high school and junior high. 

You may also enjoy these other blog entries featuring important historical discoveries or places:

The Bayeaux Tapestry

Hadrian's Wall

Announcing our New Medieval History Through Literature

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"I love homeschooling"

Today we have another wonderful entry from Samantha! I love how Samantha shares her heart in this entry and know you will find it so encouraging. In case you're new here and missed Samantha's other entries, here's links to those: Introducing Samantha, and Update from Samantha. Here's Sam:

Samantha and her family

I love homeschooling. There are so many reasons I love to homeschool. I think I have always been a closet teacher. I love the teaching aspect. I love the discovering new facts and sharing them. I love a good book and the enchantment of the characters. I love getting to spend my days with my children, (well at least most days). I love getting to meet the individual needs of my kids. I have three boys, and each is so different from each other. But this month, the thing I have loved the most, is the flexibility. With this winter has come the flu. And oh, how it hit our house. Let me add that at the beginning of December, we moved. Moving is challenging. Moving with 3 young children is insane. And it almost drove me there. I felt I had set up good expectations so we would just take all of December off to move and settle in and enjoy Christmas. And we would begin again the second week of January. Emails went out and our group was ready and excited to meet up again that second week. But with the first few days of January came the dreaded stomach bug, which put me in the hospital, and then the flu, which all of my family members were afflicted by. And then to add, a small accident where we thought our three year-old's arm was broken. And although it wasn’t broken, he wasn’t able to use it for over a week. What a couple of months for us! I can’t even imagine if we were plugged into “regular” school and felt the pull of homework assignments and projects. One of my second graders was sick with a high fever for almost 2 weeks! That would have been two weeks out of school! When I was a girl, I had pneumonia a number of times and would be out of school for weeks at a time. The amount of work that I would have to complete upon my return was overwhelming and would contribute to my poor grades and less than loving feelings regarding my education. 

This has made me feel so grateful for my homeschooling and our curriculum this year. We all decided to hold off on meeting through the beginning of January and preceded with our history lessons on our own. We spent the month with the pilgrims and Squanto. I say “spent time with” because it feels like that. We aren’t just studying the people and facts and memorizing dates, we are spending time with these people. We felt the seasickness of the pilgrims as they spent nine long weeks below the decks of the Mayflower, waiting with anticipation for a land that would provide them freedom to worship God. We laughed at the telling of little mischievous Francis Billington who single-handedly could have ended
the pilgrim’s journey by almost setting fire to the cabin where the gunpowder was stored. We were mad together at Captain Hunt who evilly captured not only Squanto, but other Indians to sell to the Spaniards. And we were grateful to meet Brother Luis and Brother Diego who rescued Squanto from being a slave and sent him back to England. 

Our group met together again today, at least most of our group. One family in our group is still at the tail end of this flu. But it was a wonderful morning together. We started on The Courage of Sarah Noble. And although our group is mostly boys, they still are connected to the story and the characters. Even my three year old lay in my lap listening to me read, popping up to tell us Thomas, the name of the horse in this story, is also the name of a train. We talked about Mistress Robinson and her sons and how it feels to be teased. The children colored beautiful pictures for me and talked about what it would be like to live in a cave.

I love homeschooling. I love the flexibility. I love the freedom. I am a grateful mom. 

Thank you Sam! We're happy you have all fully recovered from a hectic two months. I can certainly relate and I know there are lots of families out there who can as well. Homeschooling does provide wonderful flexibility, something that really is essential for young families. 

What I loved the most about this entry and Vanessa's entry from earlier this week, is how good history provides not only a historical education but encourages the development of emotions like compassion, empathy, humor, and dismay at injustice. Well-told history encourages emotional maturity and provides students with an awareness of their place in the world, and in the sequence of human events. By being able to empathize with Squanto and be angered by the injustice wrought upon him, these young children are being shaped into compassionate people who "love mercy." 

Additionally, fostering a love of history in children and students provides a counterweight to the doomsday attitude that is so prevalent today. While the news is filled with stories that can make even the most hopeful of us want to retreat from society and start a survivalist commune, history shows us that humanity has faced much worse circumstances in the past. While we like to think that we face unique challenges in our technological and modern lives, there really is nothing new under the sun because human nature remains the same as it has been from the beginning. In fact, the time in which we live is one of the most peaceful in the history of the world, one marked by reduced poverty and more equality than ever seen before! Knowing one's history, learning about strong characters like Squanto who overcame incredible hardship without bitterness, places today's problems within their proper context. By teaching your children their history in a way that sparks their curiosity and develops their emotional capabilities you are equipping them to face the challenges of the future with the wisdom of the past and the compassion needed to create life-affirming solutions. How exciting! 

You may also enjoy:

Struggling student? Here's food for thought

Losing the Classics

Stories from BF Users and Product Updates

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Pride and Prejudice Bicentennial Anniversary

The internet has been abuzz with the news of the 200th anniversary of the publication of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Undoubtedly her most famous novel and one whose relevance only seems to increase as time passes, Pride and Prejudice has been firmly established as one of the classics. It's growing popularity in recent years has been helped along by movie adaptation, mini-series, bizarre sequels and retellings (including one that involved zombies). While I'm a purist when it comes to the stories and I refuse to read any of the many "sequels" that contemporary writers have put forth (in my mind it's pure arrogance on the part of any writer to attempt to "finish" the story of Elizabeth and Darcy), I have enjoyed some of the movie adaptations. The BBC version with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle is second to none. In my opinion later film versions have been wanting and the idea of casting Keira Knightly in the role of Elizabeth was unpardonable although there are people in my family who would disagree. Anyway, Jane Austen's ability to create distinct characters who are fully developed, unique, and able to express themselves in entirely different voices is nearly unparalleled. The fact that the world is celebrating this book 200 years after its publication bears witness to the universality of its themes, it's ability to capture human nature and the imagination. So much more than a love story, Austen provides commentary on human ambition, our ability to deceive ourselves, the folly of human pride, social structures, wealth, gender roles, and so much more. Here's some of the fun things that have been popping up in celebration. Enjoy!

Pride and Prejudice Hypertext: wonderfully useful guide to each character and all the ins and outs of the plot.

The peaks and troughs of Darcy and Elizabeth's popularity over time: interesting info-graphic from the Economist.

Pride and Prejudice Movie Roundup: clips and commentary on the four movie versions.

The best covers: an excellent slide show featuring the best cover designs for the various editions of Pride and Prejudice. One has a spelling error, can you spot it?

'A woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper' … Alison Steadman as Mrs Bennet in the 1995 BBC adaptation. Photograph: BBC

Reading Austen to Avoid Becoming Mrs. Bennet: my mom, Rea Berg, wrote a great blog entry on the intolerable Mrs. Bennet.

Brief illustrated version of Pride and Prejudice: in honor of the bicentennial, Jen Sorensen came up with clever version. 

Jane Austen's Regency World: a fun source of information on all things Austen. 

Don't forget to check out our Facebook and Pinterest pages. And if you've enjoyed this, please feel free to share using the buttons below!

"Connection and love"

Following the series of blog entries on the American educational system (available here and here), we thought it would be nice to share something much more positive! Below is an entry from Vanessa Hill. You may remember Samantha's great entries on her experience switching from a classical program to BFB this year. Well, Samantha and Vanessa are friends and are both in the midst of their first year using our curriculums. In light of the downfalls of the industrial model of education, we find it so encouraging to see mothers like Samantha and Vanessa standing up and taking a different route. This takes courage, tenacity, time, and diligence and we feel honored to be able to partner with them on this educational journey. Without further ado, here is Vanessa:

I hope this finds you well as I describe my homeschooling experience and the gem I stumbled upon with Beautiful Feet Books. Currently, I am going on my third year of homeschooling with my 10-year-old nephew and 15-year-old daughter. Both of my kids are adopted and come from much heartache and backgrounds of trauma. Homeschooling has been the best thing that has happened to our family. Last year, at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions, I heard Rea Berg speak on the importance of children’s literature and was moved. I then visited her booth and after much discussion, laughter, and insight, I realized that I wanted what she had. Treasured memories and countless deposits of love developed throughout the years by reading rich literature with her children. I was hoping to gain the same. Well, it’s almost been one year of doing two curriculums with two different aged children, and the bonding is unexplainable. First, I feel like my 10 year old finds the details of history so intriguing and his appreciation is expanding so much more. His favorite time of the day is cuddling on the couch and laughing together while we read together. Now, what is happening between my best friend, my daughter and I, has been truly transcending. We read Uncle Tom’s Cabin together and so many emotions surface my heart and soul just thinking about it. The connection of mother and daughter being together and apart, the tears we wept, and the spiritual lessons that were learned were more than I expected. My children, who have learned to deal with real struggle and pain, can correlate their experiences to the hardships of the men and women they are now learning about. I am convinced that history through literature and great children’s literature did wonders for my children who yearned for true connection in their inmost beings. This way helps gear us to just that and I would recommend it to anyone and any family. Thank you Rea and Beautiful Feet for inspiring me and my home to gear towards what really matters….connection and love.
Thank You,
Vanessa Hill

Thank you Vanessa! I love her story because it shows that reading aloud is something that can continue long past the time your children learn to read themselves. Keep making time to read with your older children! It may seem unnecessary or awkward at first but it will be so worth the effort. Sharing the experience of stories like Uncle Tom's Cabin, To Kill a Mockingbird, Shakespeare's plays and Chaucer's Canterbury Tales opens doors of communication that can otherwise remain firmly shut. Sharing great stories together allows bonds to form and trust develop even in wary teenagers who are asserting their independence. Discussing stories together can allow children to develop and express their own opinions as well as encourage compassion and empathy. No, reading together will not solve all the problems you may face with a hormonal teenager, but it will provide a shared experience that may very will encourage communication and, as Vanessa so beautifully states, "connection and love."

For those of you who are interested, Vanessa is currently using our U. S. and World History, Geography Through Literature and our Early American History for primary students.

You may also enjoy these other entries written by homeschooling moms:

Introducing Samantha

Update from Samantha

Stories from BFB Users and Product Updates

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Children as Resources

Today we're continuing with our examination of the compulsory educational model as evaluated in a series of essays from the Front Porch Republic. Today we're looking at the third essay entitled Life Under Compulsion: The Billows Teaching Machine. Just as we have talked before about the industrial model of standardized education, this essay provides a withering critique of a system that views people as resources and bows to the dictates of a tyrannical clock.

Anthony Esolen draws a connection between our school systems (even that phrase connotes a mechanization of learning) and the farcical skit of Charlie Chaplin working in a factory. The effects of a day divided into units of production dehumanizes Chaplin to the point that he becomes a part of the machine, frantically tightening screws even after he's left work. Productivity is the name of the game and the day is divided into segments designed for efficiency but completely devoid of those things that make life worthwhile. There is no "time" for human connection, creativity, affection, making mistakes. Esolen then shows how the industrial model is seen in the divisions of an average school day. Of the current scholastic model, he observes the following:

We are so accustomed to its ways that we can scarcely imagine any alternative.  Children must be segregated by age.  Why?  Is that natural?  Do all children learn the same things at the same time and the same rate?  Uniformity is the product of a machine, not of a living organism, much less the living spiritual being called man.  Children must be hustled from room to room, or from subject to subject, at the ringing of a bell.  Why?  Do all subjects that merit study fit neatly into forty-two minute cubbyholes?  What if a child’s interest in the subject is just then beginning to kindle?  Doesn’t that matter?  What if it just takes longer to read a chapter of Treasure Island?  Should the child have to curtail the reading in mid-event – as if freezing the characters in place?

The end result of such an unquestioning acceptance of the importance of productivity and efficiency is children ruled by a compulsion to hurtle forward without the gift of free time. Imaginations are stunted, curiosity is discouraged, and conformity is the virtue of the day. As I'm reading through these essays and thinking about education it is striking to me how quickly this model became the accepted way of doing things. In the course of human history, this is all relatively new. I've been listening to lectures from Marilynne Robinson, Krista Tippet, Brené Brown, and others and they speak about the process of true learning and the importance of curiosity and how the neglect of these elements has profound consequences. I will be sharing the links to these talks later as they dovetail so perfectly with the essays we are currently reading through. For now, I wanted to mention them because I think we are at the beginning of a movement that is looking at our failed educational models and seeking an alternative. Interestingly enough, most of the inspiration is coming from the past, from historical models that worked for centuries. Esolen goes on to observe the same thing:

Homeschoolers know what I am getting at here.  When Socrates and Phaedrus were sitting under the plane tree on the country road from Athens, no alarm rang on the old man’s watch to tell him it was time to move from moral philosophy to metaphysics.  “Sorry, Phaedrus, but your time is up” – no one can imagine Socrates saying such a thing.  When Jesus sat upon the hillside and taught the crowds, he and they were so taken up into meditation upon the kingdom of God that they lost all sense of time, and soon the sun was setting and – well, unless you are a reader of The New York Times or a graduate of Harvard you know the rest of the story.  When, in Paradise Lost, Adam and Eve are sitting in the cool of the evening, recalling when they first met and praising the goodness of God, Eve expresses a joy that teachers and students should know, but rarely have the chance to know:
     With thee conversing I forget all time,
     All seasons and their change, all please alike.
That was, of course, when people measured their works according to the place of the sun, and the state of the weather; the whole world was their time.  That whole world had not yet been concentrated into the electric clicks of a machine on a wall.

I'm currently reading through Plato's account of Socrates and Phaedrus discussing virtue, ethics, and justice and it's true, these are not subjects that can be taught in 45 minute segments. They are subjects that take exploration, questioning, pondering. And, this also shows the absolute importance of knowing our history. In our modern world of scientific explanation we've valued "fact" over wonder, answers over questions, and correctness over contemplation.

I would love to hear what you think about these essays and their content. Share your experiences in moving towards an educational model that addresses students in a more holistic manner. How do you encourage questioning, contemplation, and wonder? In my experience great books are essential. Curriculums that encourage critical thinking and probing for answers not provided in an answer key is one aspect of our approach at BFB, as is providing outlets for creative expression. What about you?

You may also enjoy:

Sir Ken Robinson on Education

A Discussion on Education

Education as Legacy

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Compulsory Education

Mt. Zion One Room School House

Anthony Esolen, over at Front Porch Republic, has a series of stimulating essays on education. I've thoroughly enjoyed reading through them and think that you will also find them thought-provoking. The first of the essays sets up his groundwork for the series of six essays on compulsory education and I am working my way through each one. I thought I would share some thoughts from the second essay, "Life Under Compulsion: From Schoolhouse to School Bus".  

In this essay Esolen traces the development of educational institutions from the well-loved one room school house to its modern form. He makes a convincing argument that the element of compulsion has transformed education from an extension of the community to something very different. He begins by describing the schools that once had a place in every small town across the States:

The school looks in part like a home, or a small town hall, or a chapel.  Appropriately so, since it is a public extension of the home, in harmony with the virtues encouraged by the church.  As at home, as in church, children intermingle, the older ones seeing to the younger ones.  There is no unnatural separation by year of birth.  The teacher is hired by the people, for their purposes; he or she is not a member of a cabal intent upon subverting the purposes of their employers.  The school belongs to the people who live there.  It is their free and liberty-making creation.

He argues that these little schools were the products of communities that formed naturally, one might say organically. The education received by children enrolled reflected the values held by the community and prepared students for the lives most of them would go on to live.

The transportation revolution and the introduction of bussing transformed this form of education. School bussing programs allowed schools to consolidate, move away from their immediate communities, and eventually paved the way for the adoption of state mandated curriculum standards. Esolen sees this as a very unnatural development and one that has had devastating effects on the education of our children.

He also sees the movement away from community directed education as one that has disenfranchised parents. The obstacle of distance combined with state and federally mandated curriculums has pushed parents to the sidelines. While there are many schools that welcome parental involvement the system is neither easy to navigate and sometimes downright hostile.

As this movement away from community progressed, it was aided by the advent of "scientifically" based educational models:

But what really killed it [the community school], as it seems to me, was the new “science” of education peddled at the teachers’ colleges.  It hardly matters what that “science” would decree.  It might have, in a Dewey-less world, decreed a classical education for everyone; that would have been superior to the flattening pseudo-democratic education it did decree, but it still would have carried the bacilli of compulsion.  The point is that teachers, usually of modest intellectual attainments, came to feel themselves armed with “science,” as against the “prejudices” of their employers the parents, whom it was their sacred duty to oppose, if need be.  Hence came the wave upon wave of educational “innovation,” all impossible without the precondition of compulsion.  No smart-aleck teacher, alone in a small schoolhouse, would have dared to introduce anything so staggeringly stupid as the basal reader or the New Math (that is, Set Theory for little children) or the replacement of history with current events or the wholesale ditching of geography or the introduction of modish obscenity in English classes. . .without being fired – after having had to face the withering scorn of the employers, the parents, some of whom, for keenness of intellect, could no doubt have used that teacher to mop the floor. 

Isn't that interesting? I will be going through the other essays over the next weeks and hope you find them interesting. As people who have stood in the face of these trends and have fought for your right to educate your own children, I think you will find the series interesting. If you want to read the series click on the hyperlinks above and you will be able to find links to all the essays.

You may also enjoy:

Family Read-Alouds, Part I

Family Read-Alouds: Part II

Family Read-Alouds, Part III

Family Read-Alouds, Part IV

Don't forget to check out our Facebook and Pinterest pages. 

And if you've enjoyed this, please feel free to share using the buttons below!