Call & Response

The Call: The Dumb Ox — Jessica

Virtue is a habit of the will.
— St. Thomas Aquinas

Well, that may actually be a very loose paraphrase of Aquinas but it’s pithy and it works with teenagers. It’s one of those sayings that I repeat to the kids all the time. So often, in fact, that they seem to know when it’s coming.

Once, my oldest two were trying to lobby me for some new and violent video game that involved car thefts and general hooliganism. They were making the case that they realized it was just a game and pretend and they certainly weren’t going to go hijack a car and run over our neighbors.

“Yes,” I argued back, “but it’s the effect of the bad behavior on your habits because, you know, virtue…”

“is a habit of the will,” they interrupted, groaning, eyes rolling.

But they did slink away and never asked for that particular game again.

Response: New Growth — Cheryl

Inspired a great deal by a certain blogging partner of mine, I’m trying to develop the habit of slowing down and noticing the beautiful details that surround me. Without a doubt, the simple act of shooting photos every single day helps with that, but I want to do it even when I have no camera in hand, when there’s nothing to see but plenty to hear, when one of my kids has something of the utmost important to share with me.