The Kids of Integrity Challenge is finished!

Operation Covert Gentleman

We sat around the dinner table last night, reviewing our “Family Respect Rules.” We also discussed next steps on our lesson, which includes making a poster with the rules written on it and placed in a prominent spot in our house. I think we’ll put it on the back of our front door, since we want to be reminded of these respect rules every day, numerous times. Eventually, we might not even need to be reminded.

We discovered this past week that these new respect rules aren’t simply for the boys – the entire family will be going on this journey! This was never more evident than this past week when someone in our house (we will not mention any names so as not to bring shame on the offending party – me!) didn’t follow one of the Family Respect Rules by failing to knock on the door of a certain room in the house to make sure it wasn’t occupied. Let’s just say you would’ve thought that the first time “he” (I) heard the bloodcurdling scream that “he” (I) would’ve clued in to knock the next time.

Ultimately, we’re trying to teach our boys to be respectful gentlemen. We could just tell them this, but what better way to teach them than through practical experience? So, I came up with an idea called  . . . (cue Mission Impossible music here) . . . “Operation Covert Gentleman.” The point of the exercise is to teach them to go outside their own little world, stretch their comfort zone and look for ways to help others. Our first exercise will be to go to the grocery store and purposefully look for people – perhaps ladies and/or the elderly – to help carry groceries to their car.

This message will self-destruct in five seconds. No – four seconds. Wait! I’m not done . . . tick, tick, tick . . . uh oh.

Tags:

• Respect