Precepts and concepts behind them.

       This post I would like to dedicate to Precepts. By definition, a precept is a general rule intended to regulate behavior or thought. This book introduced this concept to me. I mean, I have always had those in my life, phrases that I try to live by, but I never had a name for the term. Precepts. I like the sound of it. One precept that I have always tried to follow is "Treat others the way you want to be treated." I knew from experience that being bullied was not fun so I always tried to treat people nicely, no matter what. If we got a new kid in school, I always tried to go talk to them and make friends with them. Being the new kid is hard. Auggie knows. Here is a list of precepts that I try to follow:

1. Treat others the way you want to be treated. 
2. And in time this too shall pass. My mom used to tell me this all the time when I would come home crying from school. I actually plan on this phrase being my next tattoo.
3. Don't judge a book by it's cover. Or in Auggie's case, a boy by his face. Some of the best books are the one lacking in cover art.
4. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. I'm not sure where this originated, but it is now a line of a famous Kelly Clarkson song. It came to me in a time of life where I really needed to hear that. 
5. What goes around, comes around. This one has let me hold on to hope that no deed goes unpunished. I would like to think that karma is there and will take care of those who need it. 

These are my precepts. I love that in the book they are introduced to this concept in the fifth grade. I would love to incorporate this into my teaching in the future. Sometimes being introduced to a good precept can change your life.
"When given the choice between being right or being kind, choose kind." -Dr. Wayne W. Dyer

       I would like to create my own personal precept. "Always be kind. You never know what someone is going through at home, work, or school, and your kind words could save their life." I know this is true for me. I would also like to share a link here http://twloha.com/blog/we-are-stories-still-going This link is a blog by Jaime Tworkowski, the founder of TWLOHA. I am an active member of USI's Uchapter of TWLOHA. I read this blog on a day that I was feeling very depressed. It has helped me a lot. Maybe it could help you too. We are all stories still going. Now Auggie gets to add characters to his.