The Ten Commandments of our Family

This little piece bubbled to the surface yesterday.  It was inspired by, well, I bet you can tell what inspired it!  I promulgated it last night just before read aloud time.  It made everybody laugh but I have to say everyone behaved very well today (relatively speaking, of course!).

The Ten Commandments of our Family

1.  Thou shalt speak always with kindness and respect to thy family.

2.  Thou shalt use thy magic words, like please, thank you, excuse me and you’re welcome.

3.  Thou shalt not belittle, goad or insult thy siblings or parents.  It is far better to hold thy tongue than to say something hurtful.

4.  Thou shalt not fly into rages and resort to shouting and violence.  Instead thou shalt practice self-restraint and pray often to God to help with controlling thy temper.  Devotion to God brings patience and self-control.

5.  If thou art angry, thou shalt soothe thyself by doing constructive things to turn away wrath, such as running, walking, biking or any other physical exertion which will work off thy rage (50 jumping jacks, as many push ups as thou can do, running in place for 5 minutes).  Or thou can distract thyself by reading comics, listening to an interesting audio book, taking a bath or shower or playing in water (water is quieting), watching a funny or engrossing TV show or whatever other activity thou finds that quiets thee.

6.  Thou shalt show thoughtfulness and consideration to others.

7.  Thou shalt be obedient and cooperate cheerfully, especially in thy studies and chores.

8.  Thou shalt do every task assigned to thee as best as thy can.

9.  Thou shalt politely take a bite or two of food prepared for thee by thy beloved mother.  If thou dost not care for the food, thou shalt quietly get thyself some other wholesome food to eat, cleaning up after thyself.  Thou shalt do this quietly so as to not draw attention to thyself.

10.  Thou shalt remember that God gave thee life and thy job here on earth is to give that life back to Him who made thee.  Thou shalt do this by living to glorify Him in His Love and Mercy and conforming thyself to Christ.