An Unschooling Journey for Kids and Parents: Julieta Duvall Interview

Julieta is an unschooling mom who travels the world as a flight attendant. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan in Romance Languages and Literatures, Spanish and Portuguese and Latin American and Caribbean Studies. She is passionate about other cultures, traveling, languages, books, unschooling and inspiring others to live in partnership with their children.

If you’re like me, you might be scratching your head with pre-conceived notions about unschooling. Read on to hear how Julieta’s journey into the world of unschooling has changed her perspective both as a parent and a person.

Q1: What do you do for a living?

I have been a flight attendant for a major US airline for 12 years and in the aviation industry for a total of 18 years. I run a homeschooling blog where I help people transition to homeschooling/unschooling with a focus in gentle parenting and partnership with our children.

Q2: What is the name of your latest project? Tell us more about why you embarked on this project. If a writer, share your synopsis.

There are too many to count but I’m working on the courage to share with others, through a book, the anger I healed from as the result of seeing my children as people. The emotional aspect of it is strong and I’m in the early stages of it. One title that keeps ringing in my head is “Confessions of an Angry Mom” but I’m not sure that will be it.

Q3: How does travel play a role in both your personal and professional choices?

I have always said that aviation is a lifestyle. I see traveling in a very similar way, you either have it or you don’t. And we do. We are always moving, whether it is houses or places. Our life is based on travel and consistently inconsistent and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Q4: Do you believe travel provides a positive or negative effect on the world? How?

Such a complex question. It provides both positive and negative effects. I just believe there is a fine balance between those two and we should aim for positive effects, always. Traveling gives way to the ‘western savior’ type of mentality but we can move away from that by being present where we are and not assuming other places need our help. I guess I’m still working through this because there is no easy answer and there are some negatives that would make ban traveling like sex tourism. But then we have the positive when people are able to leave harmful situations such as war zones. Lots to think about. Sorry for the rambling. Lol.

Q5: What does responsible travel mean to you?

For me it is going to a place and not taking more than you give. Back in college I remember a conversation and a documentary of people going to Argentina to play soccer in some of the poorest areas around town and it was evident that they thought they were doing the best by bringing all of their gear and stuff but I felt that they were just showing off and they took from the community the love for soccer and what it means to those communities sometimes. It’s an outlet. Fast forward to 2022 and I read an article that talked about that but in terms of education. So, yes. Don’t take more than you give.

Q6: How would you differentiate between travel and tourism?

OMG. I have a lot to say about this because I’m from México and now live in Michigan but I’ll try to keep it short. Tourism, to me, is when people think they own the place, lack of respect for cultural differences and just be obnoxious because they pay for it. That’s one of the reasons that I avoid working the flights from Detroit to Cancún. Travel is when you find the balance between nourishing your soul by the simple pleasures of life. Eating good food, spending time with loved ones and, if you are lucky, to see other cultures from the inside.

Q7: What do you think is the biggest threat travel could pose on the world? How can that be mitigated?

The fact that our planet is suffering is obvious. But we, humans, are not willing to sacrifice our conveniences and luxuries to aid the damage that we have created. I would love to see us learn how to enjoy life without excesses and appreciate a ‘leaving no trace behind’ life.

Q8: How does education come into play in your life? Do you seek out learning opportunities while traveling?

Again, so much to say about that… Education isn’t linear and neither is life. Traveling is the best of both worlds. I don’t necessarily seek education because I love those organic moments of meeting others and finding myself asking questions but it certainly finds me. My last trip to México I encountered a guy who was fascinating to talk to and told me my sister should drink iguana blood so she could get better. Then he went over the remedies his family used in the ‘rancho’ and I was just blown away. And before that my son and I looked up why liquids are not allowed through security and we spend 30 minutes reading about the bombs that could have harmed thousands of people because of the attacks planned with bottles filled with harmful liquids. And the best part was that I now know that Ciudad de México is no longer just ‘El DF’ but it is ‘CDMX (ce/de/me/x) .. and just like that I was educated in meaningful (to me) items. So, I’d say that traveling done right is education.

Q9: What is your experience with alternative education (worldschooling, unschooling, etc.)?

We started traditional homeschooling in 2020 and we have transitioned into an unschooling lifestyle. I’m deep in unschooling and I have found my purpose in life… Prior to the pandemic I had an idea of worldschooling because of my job as a flight attendant and our flight benefits but didn’t really dive into it until late 2019 with some research that came in handy in 2020.

Q10: Eckhart Tolle said, “Awareness is the greatest agent for change.” In your opinion, how can education affect awareness? What is education lacking today?

Education lacks respect for children and their intelligence. Without respect for children and the people that they already are it’s hard to become an ‘agent of change’ because we are following a path far from who they already are.

Q11: How do you think travel and education can support each other?

The learning opportunities are endless while traveling. It can be a short day trip or a month-long trip. Either way, starting from a place of wander can lead to amazing finds of the places we are visiting. Also, finding a balance between our needs (relaxation, escaping our day-to-day life) and understanding that we are leaving our home to visit someone else’s home, let’s behave like guests.

Q12: Have you ever volunteered or supported a local cause or initiative while traveling?

Nothing with an organization but my sister and I are dog lovers and she always helps out the strays in México and sometimes she finds veterinarian care for them. We support and participate when we visit.

Q13: How do you support your local community?

We seek out businesses that are local for our needs but we are very DIY type of people and we make a lot of our own stuff. I have done some small projects through the University of Michigan, my alma mater, in the past but they haven’t been back up since Covid.

Q14: What struggles have you run into along the way while accomplishing your goals? If you travel, how does that impact your goals?

I want to do many things. Like too many. And I once read that ‘you can do anything, but you can’t do everything.” soooo true… Traveling for me as a flight attendant is like connecting with all kinds of crazy, good, human and more… I love it and some of my most intense and creative processes happen while away on trips. This is due because being a flight attendant is a very lonely job and I cherish that time. When traveling with my family is a different story, we slow down and take in all of the beauty of traveling—the drive or the flight and the destination.

Q15: Aldous Huxley said, “I wanted to change the world. But I have found that the only thing one can be sure of changing is oneself.” How have you changed throughout your creative process? How do you improve yourself every day?

So many things to say about this question. I love it. I can tell you that I used to blame the world, my parents and the weather for my insecurities and shortcomings. That all changed when I started homeschooling my children and more so when I began the transition to unschooling. My children had the courage to tell me that I was a hot mess and that I needed to work on myself…and to be honest, I didn’t want to. I mean who wants to realize that you have so much unfinished business .. shouldn’t you have it all together by now?

My creative process depends on me taking ownership of my needs and making sure I take care of them. It’s not the responsibility of my husband or my children to do that. It’s only mine. I read as much as I can about healing, compassion, understanding that I did the best I could with what I had at the time… This process has not been easy but oh so worth it!!

Q16: What one thing would you ask your audience to do to help inspire social change?

See children as people and give them the freedom that they are born with. That way we can minimize the generational trauma that we all have now. Free children will become happier adults and more likely to achieve the social change this world needs.

Q17: Maya Angelou said, ‘I did then what I knew how to do, but now that I know better, I do better.’ We are all flawed humans. Perhaps we haven’t made the most responsible choices in the past. Give us one suggestion on how we can travel responsibly and/or make a positive impact on the world around us.

Slow down. Go slow and allow your senses to soak in the beauty around you. Ponder on the miracles of nature that make living on this planet a reality.

Q18: Challenge readers and listeners with action steps to increase engagement with identifying hashtag and @mention.

I’m not sure if this is the right answer but lately I have been using the phrase “Your time is precious, make it count.” That stems from our unschooling lifestyle and how we as a family are aware of how finite time is. We believe in spending time where it matters and with the people that matter and letting go anything else that doesn’t nurture our soul.

Q19: How can we connect with you and learn more about unschooling?

My blog was started in 2021 and it’s a work in progress. The choices to build a community are endless and we are finding what works for us.

Blog: www.hswithatwist.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mx_flying_mama/ -and- https://www.instagram.com/hswithatwist/

Final Words

You can also check out Julieta’s video interview, and many more like her by clicking here.

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