Student Profile: Jansen Lyons
1. What makes your family unique to other families you know?
What makes my family unique to others is that we are a traditional family.
We love to go outdoors, to make things with our hands, our own skills and talents, and we chose homeschooling, as difficult a challenge it may be compared to public schools, to give ourselves a deeper, well-rounded, and more Catholic education. It has already paid off tremendously.
We have helped build our Mom’s own soap business, we have traveled all over the South-West of the US, grown in our talents each in a personal and tremendous way, made discoveries, and learned far more than any of us ever expected along the way.
2. What is an average homeschooling day with Seton like for you?
An average Seton homeschooling day would be to start with a short prayer, then dive right into work. I do all of our most difficult subjects first so I have to most time to learn and solve the problems as best as I can for these subjects.
I stop for a quick lunch, do some chores in-between, and start up where I left off. I try my best to say a prayer before each test or essay, and I try to finish with enough time to work on my hobbies or play with friends; but I keep a full day of school always before me before anything.
Each week I try to give myself a project to do, or just continue one previous, so that I am not just doing school or games. It’s fun most importantly.
3. What’s something you have done that you really enjoyed doing?
Something I have really enjoyed doing is to participate with activities and ministries at my home parish. It is an honor to say that I served as an Altar server for 10 years here at my home parish, and I wouldn’t be the same person without it.
Every Sunday evening, I especially enjoy going to our LifeTeen youth ministry group as well. Everyone is so friendly and faithful, and their examples of Christ in my life have been without compare. Each of these ministries has helped me grow in my faith as well as friendships incredibly!
4. What are your hobbies and interests?
My main hobby is that I am a professional meteorite hunter. I enjoy astronomy and rock hounding or fossil collecting, but looking for rocks that fall from space has given me the thrill of a lifetime, as it was to me when I started 10 years ago the perfect combination of these two childhood joys and a chance to do something unique and incredible.
I have been blessed so far to have discovered 18 of these relics from space, and have collected nearly three hundred for my private collection. I have traveled all over the South-West in search of these rare rocks, and have met so many wonderful people who share my interest.
My other interest, however, is writing. I have been teaching myself to write stories for years, and I have only just finished the first actual book.
It’s a short stories book, short and simple, but soon I will begin writing novels and stories of all kinds. In doing so, my hope is to write and renew the realm of Christian literature for everyone, and to give myself something as well.
5. What are some things you do as a family and on your own that you particularly enjoy?
The things I enjoy doing with my family are going on hikes, road trips, outdoors things, and hanging out and making things with them. We have hiked dozens of very long trails together, including some in the Grand Canyon, and our vacations take us over thousands of miles.
We build furniture and tools, go swimming or hiking, kayaking, we go out and shoot for target practice and do other manly things, we do crafts of all sorts, too though; and overall I enjoy having the blessing of doing it all with my family. I can’t say enough of how blessed I am to participate with my family in each activity, project, or adventure.
On my own, I correspond with other professionals, professors, and meteorite hunters and collectors from around the world. We all share our discoveries and adventures, and together we learn about what we love.
I jot down notes for my writing projects, maybe write a story or two, and I have been continuing my self-education in Catholic literature by reading and writing alike. I enjoy my work, my friends, and every blessing God has given me every day.
6. What do you hope to do in the future?
In the future, I hope to further my knowledge of the Faith. Without this, I wouldn’t be able to say I have earned the title of professional meteorite hunter or high school graduate.
It’s hard, but through every difficulty my Faith has kept me going. I want to write my books and continue to bear fruit with my talents. To spend time with my family and friends and to share adventures and projects with them.
I have only just begun to use all that my Faith and high-school education with Seton Homeschooling has taught me, and I can’t wait for the adventures that will come.
