BIRCHWOOD ELEMENTARY 

FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S DESK:

I found the following guide by Frank Outlaw and have shared it with many students over the years.  I trust that you will find these words as instructive and helpful as I have: 

“Watch your thoughts, they become your words;

Watch your words, they become your actions;

Watch your actions, they become your habits;

  Watch your habits, they become your character;

                       Watch your character,

                                …it becomes your destiny.”

A person’s conduct and character are formed and informed by their ethical and religious beliefs.  Plato and Aristotle both voiced the notion of a “virtuous person”, and these thoughts have resonated throughout history.   In a nut shell they held that only a person who demonstrated fortitude, prudence, justice and self-discipline were capable of fulfilling their personal potential.  We might have different adjectives to describe these same virtues but the essence of them remains the same.

Fortitude, or courage:   the will to carry out good decisions even in the heat of peer pressure or resistance.

Prudence or judgment:   the wisdom and ability to think through good decisions in the first place.

Justice, or fairness:   honesty and empathy in dealing with others.

Self-discipline or control:   being able to do what needs to be done when it needs to be done without putting oneself first.

Society’s values and views are vast and swiftly moving, if we do not ground our children in correct moral living and decision making they will be swept along with the crowd, with no sense of why, and their character and conduct will suffer greatly.  At Birchwood we are really trying to endorse the communication of virtues, daily.  We hope that these character building attitudes are being echoed at home as well, as this is where the children really put it all together.   

John Luther states, “Build character piece by piece:    By thought, by choice, by courage, by determination.”

  Food for thought this month!   

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