Cardinal Virtues

Prudence (wisdom, of sorts)...
Justice (doing what is fair/just)...
Temperance (exercising self-control)...
Fortitude (courage)...

Out of these four cardinal virtues, which one would I say I need to work on the most at present? What would be a good plan of action to make sure I do this?

That's a tough question, but it is one we asked our students on their Family Life test today. There were definitely some honest and thoughtful answers!

Here is what my answer probably would have looked like had I taken that very test this morning:

"The virtue I need to practice most in my life right now is temperance. Temperance can be hard for me because it is moderating an amount of something that I really enjoy. Take chocolate for example. That is definitely one of my downfalls - I eat too much of it if it's readily available. My plan of action is to buy a bag of individually wrapped dark chocolate Hershey's kisses that I will keep in the freezer. I will only replace them every X amount of weeks. If I run out before then, it would only be because I did not ration them wisely or appropriately. Therefore, I would have to go without them for the amount of days left. This way, I will be sure to exercise temperance in eating sweets.
As far as exercising temperance in using electronics, I feel that I do this relatively well. I only watch a few chosen tv shows, and I do that when my work is done or when I need a break. (e.g. I watched an episode of "Castle" tonight after dinner and before grading test papers.) I can make sure I continue to work on this virtue by setting time limits for myself and/or only doing these other things once I have finished school work and gone to the gym.
Temperance is an important virtue to practice in life because it is about self-control. When I find myself losing some of this self-control, I can make sure I say a little prayer to God to redirect me. I need to remember to be grateful for what I have and to use it wisely."

Have you given these questions some thought? What virtue(s) are you in need of practicing?

(It's okay - I know I still have a lot to work on.)

And recognizing that is the first step...