Everyone gets angry or sometimes has anger lingering in them. For a young person it may be having a toy taken away from them by another child. It may be not getting their way or what they want at that very moment. As we get older though we may be angered because of being lied too or we may be frustrated, feeling guilty or it may be due to a fear that we have. 
As if the garbage patch found in the Pacific is not horrific enough scientis have now announced that a similar area is found in the Atlantic Ocean. Here is a link to an article in the National Geographic about this situation.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/03/100302-new-ocean-trash-garbage-patch/
So what can we do? Reduce the amount of plastic that we consume. We have grown to be reliant on plastic everything - but we can as individuals take steps to reduce the amount that we use on a daily basis. I have personally taken this challenge and am recording the plastic that I use. Why record it? For me it helps to make me more aware of the issue and reminds me to question myself - Is there another way of doing this without plastic. Sometimes there is - sometimes there seems to be no choice.
Be Aware.
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Each month we define and discuss a word of character development with all of our students. This month the word is Anger Management. It will be defined this way.
Young students: Anger management means: "I calm myself down when I feel angry!"
Older students: Anger management means: Dealing with anger in a safe, fair, and positive way.
If you would like to see how we will deal with this subject with our students please follow our discussions here during the month of March.
Lets look at how we can use our self control when we are tempted by something that may be appealing to us. From the simple point of view if we look at something in the store or at something that belongs to someone else, while we may want it or something like it we would not steal it. We know that taking something that does not belong to us, no matter how much we want it would be the wrong thing to do and would have very bad consequences. We know that when that trust has been broken between individuals it is very hard to get back and using our self control is how we can maintain a high level of trust with our parents, friends, teachers, and employees / employers.]]>
When we apologize quickly and sincerely we can fix many of the mistakes we make due to the lack of self control. But there is another way that 'doing the right thing' comes into play when we talk about self control. That is by thinking for ourselves even when our friends want us to do something that we don't think is right. All of us are going to find ourselves in a position when someone; schoolmate, friend, workmate, boss, is going to ask us to do something that does not feel right to us and then the question is, "Will we use our thinking ability and self control to not give in to peer pressure and do something that we will regret later?"]]>
The sea of plastics and garbage was discovered by Captain Moore. His discovery is a reminder of our responsibility to the planet and of the connection between self defense and the environment. What is our challenge and what can we do? First we must educate ourselves and then act on what we find. After that the question is what can we do to assist in the bigger picture? I look forward to hearing your ideas.]]>
We don't always get it right. We do mess up. We say things we want to take back and do things that are not safe or fair and they do hurt others. We may make a big mess of things at times. Benjamin Franklin said, "Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment." Have you found yourself sometimes wishing you didn't say something or do something due to momentary lack of self control? Of course - all of us have.]]>
Today we are going to talk about asking permission. What does asking permission have to do with self control? It starts at a very young age. When a child wants a toy or crayons that someone else is using or has in their possession, the first thing that pops in their head is to grab it and take it for themselves. Then as they get older they may use things that belong to their siblings or friends without asking. As teens this may evolve into going out or to places without clearing it first with their parents. As adults we may do things because we feel we have the right to do so (because we are adults).]]>
For us adults it may seem to be a silly subject to bring up about using manners requiring the use of self control. I have found though that listening very deeply is very hard to do. What I mean by that is that as our child, spouse, workmate or someone trying to help us in the store is trying to tell us something, that many times we are thinking about the point we want to make or what we want to say - while they are talking. This may lead right into interrupting them or finishing their sentence - so we can get our thoughts in to the conversation. Now while we correct our children for interrupting us while we are on the phone or speaking to another adult, they are watching us do the same to others. Oh how funny it is that the things that bother us about our children the most are the very habits and attitudes that we see in ourselves.]]>
Every decision or choice we make results in a consequence. Now that can be a good or a bad consequence. If our choice results in a good consequence we get rewards, and if our choice that we make results in a bad consequence then the results can vary. It may be a punishment, or a bad feeling within ourselves or a loss of a privilege. Just to take the time to examine the possible results will help us many times to make a decision that we will be pleased with in the long run. ]]>