Visiting in FL.

I haven't been writing much because I've been visiting with my daughter and her family.  I'm with her to help her through her last semester of school for a degree in social work.  There is a genuine need for these services in FL and I think she'll be very good at this kind of work.  I'll be leaving on Feb 4th and returning sometime near the end of March.  I'm sort of a nanny for the kids.  I take them to the school bus stop, pick them up, start dinner, do laundry and light housekeeping, but still I'm exhausted.  I also feed and play with the animals: a cat, a bunny, a finch and 5 or 6 geckos.  The bunny and cat are my favorites. There is also a stray or abandoned cat that arrived at her home just a few weeks before I arrived.  She's a large black and white domestic short hair and very friendly and gentle and a little timid.  I like her very much and am considering bringing her home with me after my last visit.  I already have 3 cats so what's one more?  I must be a little crazy.  But it is obvious that she is a family cat and trusts and likes people.  How she was separated from her family will most likely remain a secret for her lifetime and mine. Unless someone claims her sometime.  She has no microchip or collar, but we did advertise on the message board in their development, but so far no takers.

Next time I'll tell you about my awful computer virus.  Stay tuned.

Forming ones values and ethics

I have a little more serious topic tonight.  Values and ethics.

I don't think I have consciously thought about my values  Due to attending Catholic schools for 12 years I had my values assigned to me and was warned about hell if I didn't follow the rules and values set for me by the teachers and priests.  But I think it is something I should think about and decide more independently.  One should have values, and understand why they are important and understand why we sometimes don't pay attention to  our own values and concerns, but to the pressure of others. It canbe a good thing if your values are flexible, but it can also make you wonder why you did or did not do something.  We can live our lives listening to the voice inside or we can live them listening to the voices of others.  It isn't necessarily bad to listen to others, but it is not as satisfying in the end.  And when things go wrong there is no comfort in saying you were coerced or coaxed into doing something which does not feel right. In the end you and only you pay the price. This is a concept that is important to teach to kids so that as they become teens they have a sort of foundation of values.  Yes teach the values, but teach how to arrive at them and sometimes let them see what happens when you don't follow your own code of ethics etc.