DON'T BE STUPID! Ethical will writing prompts by Patricia Brewer As found online at http://twitter.com/triginbrew & http://trigin.com/genealogychallenges/dontbestupid.html 19 Oct 2014 - Topic #1 "LISTEN." Teach your descendants how to listen. How should they respond to accusations and demands? 19 Oct 2014 - Topic #2 "RESPOND." Learning how to listen doesn't teach you how to react appropriately. 20 Oct 2014 - Topic #3 Teach your descendants when it's appropriate to "agree to disagree," and that it is a commitment not to be broken. 22 Oct 2014 - Topic #4 Teach your descendants to be happy for others' successes, even if it causes a necessary distance between friends. 23 Oct 2014 - Topic #5 "Save your money." Teach your descendants that love isn't store-bought and to gift within their means. 23 Oct 2014 - Topic #6 "Don't be cruel." No one deserves cruelty. Teach your descendants the consequences of such actions. 24 Oct 2014 - Topic # 7 "Nurture vs Nature." Will your descendants agree with your opinion regarding what breeds criminal behavior? 26 Oct 2014 - Topic #8 "Depression." Describe how you deal with depression. Discuss what NOT to do when dealing w/ depressed people. 26 Oct 2014 - Topic #9 "Religion vs. Morals." Discuss what to do when you don't agree with a law based on religious beliefs. Con't... 26 Oct 2014 - Topic#9 con't. Discuss how religion should NOT be used to inflict pain and suffering. They don't have to be religious to be moral. 27 Oct 2014 - Topic #10 "Be open minded." It's okay to change your mind after being educated. Allow others the same opportunity. Con't... 27 OCT 2014 - Topic #10 con't. Things said in the spur of the moment don't always sound the way they were meant. Give them the benefit of the doubt. 28 Oct 2014 - Topic #11 "Educate." Teach them to never debate without facts. Educate your opponents. Don't try and win with deceit. 29 Oct 2014 - Topic #12 How we treat our kids' friends & significant others can have lasting effects. Share the mistakes you have made. 31 Oct 2014 - Topic #12 "Share your gifts." Don't just show off. Glory is momentary. Teach others how to perform your talent. 01 Nov 2014 - Topic #13 "Don't Hide the Body." Explain why true friends would never ask your descendants to hide evidence of a CRIME. 02 Nov 2014 - Topic #14 "Contraceptives aren't foolproof!" Unless you've been raped, you weren't "tricked" into pregnancy. Con't... 02 Nov 2014 - Topic #14 con't. Even if you were "tricked" by a conniving man/woman...It's still 1/2 your fault. Own it and be respectful. 03 Nov 2014 - Topic #15 "You don't need the next big thing." Wait a couple of years. Cost and functionality improve over time. Con't... 03 Nov 2014 - Topic #15 con't. How many "next big things" do you have that you never use? Encourage them to research & save for the right thing. 04 Nov 2014 - Topic #16 Graciously accept the consequences of your actions. Teach your descendants to OWN their actions. Use examples. 05 Nov 2014 - Topic #17 Don't be a hypocrite. If it's not okay for your daughter or son to do at ANY age, don't ask anyone else to do it. 06 Nov 2014 - Topic #18 Don't dwell on your mistakes. Made a mistake? Fix it. Can't fix it? Learn your lesson, then let the guilt go. 07 Nov 2014 - Topic #19 Be a parent. Your children can live without much of the "stuff" you think they need. They NEED you. 08 Nov 2014 - Topic #20 No means no and, sometimes, even yes means no. And when someone says yes, then no, that means no...To be con't. 08 Nov 2014 - Topic #20, con't. One cannot give consent if they are: under the influence of drugs/alcohol, underage, or asleep. In this case, yes means no. 08 Nov 2014 - Topic # 20, con't. Teach your descendants that if they give false testimony regarding rape, they are a special kind of stupid. 08 Nov 2014 - Topic #20, con't. Pressure, even under the guise of seduction, can slowly undermine the authority of the "NO!" No means no. Live with it. 08 Nov 2014 - Topic #20, con't. "No," and all of its synonyms are not code for, "I'm not in the mood right now, but if you seduce me, I'll change my mind." 10 Nov 2014 - Topic #21 If something goes wrong, while you're doing something right, it's an accident. "RIGHT" being the operative word. 11 Nov 2014 - Topic #23 Careful WHO you laugh at. YOUR responses to "humorous" videos teach your kids when it's appropriate to laugh. 11 Nov 2014 - Topic #22 Don't be vain. Lesson from my blind mom. Don't assume someone is "glaring" at you. Odds are, they aren't. 12 Nov 2014 - Topic #24 Keep memories. Mom threw out old letters from her sister, thinking she'd get more soon. So wrong. So sad. :( 13 Nov 2014 - Topic #25 The eye of the beholder is fickle. What you find ugly or fat today will change when karma catches up w/ you. 14 Nov 2014 - Topic #26 If you teach them never to say they're sorry unless they mean it, arm them with an empathetic vocabulary. Con't... 14 Nov 2014 - Topic #26 con't. If they don't feel sorry for something they should feel sorry for, correct that behavior when they're young. 15 Nov 2014 - Topic #27 Live and bleepin' let live! A more forceful variation on "Teach your descendants how to agree to disagree." Con't... 15 Nov 2014 - Topic #27 con't. Just in case they didn't get it the first time, make sure they know it isn't acceptable to force agreement/compliance. 18 Nov 2014 - Topic #28 Don't say, "Because I said so!" If you don't know why they should listen to you, they won't understand either. 19 Nov 2014 - Topic #29 Don't ever say out loud what you don't want to be heard. Don't write things you don't want read. Con't. 19 Nov 2014 - Topic #29 con't. I have a few letters written to me that end with, "Destroy this after reading." Really? I feel no obligation to do so. 20 Nov 2014 - Topic #30 Innocent until PROVEN guilty. Wait until ALL the FACTS are in before you pass judgement. Con't... 20 Nov 2014 - Topic #30 con't. Not guilty, does NOT mean innocent. Teach them to trust their gut instincts and stay away from people who make them uneasy. 22 Nov 2014 - Topic #31 "You aren't invincible." List things that they shouldn't "try this at home." Are you speaking from experience? 24 Nov 2014 - Topic #32 "The time to arrange transportation was BEFORE that first drink," warns guest contributor VB. Thanks, mom! ;) 25 Nov 2014 - Topic #33 You cannot be honestly persuasive and be a thug. Make them fear you and they will turn against you ASAP. 02 Dec 2014 - Topic #34 Laws are not suggestions and are not meant to be broken. Teach them appropriate ways of questioning authority. 04 Dec 2014 - Topic #35 Get off the bandwagon! If you do not educate yourself FIRST, you do more harm than good to the cause at hand. 04 Dec 2014 - Topic #36 Choose your battles wisely. Teach your descendants when it's appropriate to get involved. 05 Dec 2014 - Topic #37 If you act like this woman's mother and sister, I will disown you posthumously. @VHughesAuthor http://tinyurl.com/o8xgk9p 05 Dec 2014 - Topic #38 Do not lie to protect yourself at the expense of others. Show them how the smallest of lies can snowball. 06 Dec 2014 - Topic #39 Mugshots are NEVER cute. Your goal is to never let your descendants find criminal records in your name. 07 Dec 2014 - Topic #39 Two wrongs do not make a right. Do not make the mistake of trying to justify one by bringing up the other. 10 Dec 2014 - Topic #40 "I'm sorry!" does not necessarily mean "I'm guilty!" Do not confuse empathy with a guilty conscience. 11 Dec 2014 - Topic #41 Office romances are, for the most part, not a good idea. Give them examples from your life. 12 Dec 2014 - Topic #42 Let me count the ways that cheating on your spouse, or with someone else's spouse, is stupid... 12 Dec 2014 - Topic #43 Before you accept gifts from strangers on the phone, verify who they are first, or...to be continued 12 Dec 2014 - Topic #43 con't. ...Or you could be featured on my favorite @johnjayandrich War of the Roses! Yesterday's audio-http://www.johnjayandrich.com/media/podcast-johnjay-and-rich-on-demand-jjrpodcasts/war-of-the-rosesdecember-11th-25674727/ 13 Dec 2014 - Topic #44 Do not dehumanize your your perceived enemies. Doing so may have perilous results. Explain this to them. 14 Dec 2014 - Topic #45 Don't make things worse. You know what you did wrong. Don't pretend you don't. Don't add lies to your stupid. 15 Dec 2014 - Topic #46 Do not touch a surface to test how hot it is! That'll cost you--ER trip, a bandage, burn cream and one Tylenol. 16 Dec 2014 - Topic #47 When someone greets you with a holiday quote, THEY'RE WISHING YOU WELL. A decent response is "Thanks! You too!" 17 Dec 2014 - Topic #48 Fire hydrants, tools at construction sites, etc. are NOT toys. Let me count the ways you can get in trouble...