Rule of 6

When Mary G. posted an invitation to describe our family's Rule of 6, I thought this would be a fun opportunity to look at our family priority list from a fresh angle. Here's goes!

1. Pray.
2. Grow in Catholic virtue and culture.
3. Meet personal care needs.
4. Build positive relationships.
5. Work hard on meaningful skills and services.
6. Immerse in and discuss all encompassed by Philippians 4:8.

Thinking in terms of daily use of a Rule of Six, the biggest perk is to be satisfied and grateful at the end of each day with what is accomplished. I can look at all that is done and objectively see what does and doesn't fit with our family priorities. What does fit is worthy of our time, even if it wasn't on the schedule or didn't quite turn out as planned. For me and our family, this is so much better than trying to prove personal discipline through sticking to a planned schedule or feeling a constant failure for not sticking with a planned schedule. Also, I can isolate what doesn't fit, giving our family infinite opportunities to work on our weak areas.

A Rule of 6 can also be used in broader ways. Most recently we used our family priority list to help discern our decision to do high school at home. Our list of five priorities could, and should, be expanded to include...

Priority Six: Immersion and Discussion in Whatever...

How can we help her to grow in the spirit of Philippians 4:8? How can we help her to immerse herself in whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, gracious, excellent, and praise-worthy? How can we help her to enjoy, think about, discuss, and produce projects about these things?

Thank you, Lissa and Mary. It has been helpful and enjoyable to think about these things with you!