The Importance of Personal Responsibility

I'm not sure if skepticism comes with age. Instead of saying that I'm older, I'd like to think I was born with a good dose of it. I'm increasingly skeptical in what I see taking place in my generation and younger. The idea that there are no black and white truths, that anything can be justified and made okay by societal standards or even "Christian" standards of "God wants me to be happy" or "If we just love everyone to death, then we're all okay". Frankly, I could care less. We don't live in unicorn-rainbow land where everything is happy and gushy and in a constant state of perfectness. I'll save those feelings for heaven, thank you. I refuse to be bowled over and forced to accept the growing gray areas. There is a right and a wrong, and there always has been.

For these reasons, of absolute right and wrong, my children will learn personal responsibility. Evelynn especially has been learning this lesson. I do not accept blame being placed on any one or anything. If she gets in a scuffle with her siblings, I don't care who started it. Ultimately, it's in how she deals with it. I don't care if Caelan did something to her, she is responsible for how she chooses to proceed. She knows that I will not accept "but she did..." or "but she said..." I am fair. Everyone involved has some explaining to do. Caelan for starting something and Evelynn for how she responds.

We are now to a point that Evelynn is beginning to see that there are consequences for making wrong decisions and there is praise for making wise decisions. After any incidents, whether handled correctly or not, she admits that she is responsible for what she does. We talk about the wrong way and the right way to handle situations. She's very intuitive. Sometimes the "I'm responsible for my actions" is said excitedly because she knows she did the right thing and sometimes it's said in a barely audible mumble that trails off.

I'm so put off by the gray areas. It's yes or no. It's "I'm responsible for yes or no." There are consequences for yes or no. She's learning this. Society is well past accepting excuses for poor behavior and equally poor decisions. I hope and pray that my children will learn personal responsibilty and know that there are absolutes in behavior.