<\/p>\n
\u201cDuty done is the soul\u2019s fireside\u201d (Robert Browning).<\/p>\n
YOU\u2019D BE HARD PUT TO NAME A BETTER FEELING THAN THAT OF KNOWING YOU\u2019VE DONE WHAT WAS RIGHT. The simple knowledge that we\u2019ve acted with integrity, doing to the best of our ability the thing that most needed to be done, is not only one of life\u2019s greatest pleasures, but it\u2019s also one that\u2019s widely available. Anyone can enjoy this \u201cfireside\u201d at the end of the day.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s never entirely accurate to say we had no choice but to do a deed that was wrong. Responsibility means \u201cresponse-ability,\u201d the ability to respond. As free moral agents, we\u2019re able to choose our response, no matter what the circumstances may be that confront us and call for a decision. And we\u2019re never obligated to do anything that\u2019s impossible; we\u2019re only held accountable for doing what we can \u2014 nothing that\u2019s truly within our duty is ever out of our reach. \u201cI ought, therefore I can\u201d is how Immanuel Kant put it.<\/p>\n
Most of us want to be treated the way responsible people are treated. But the key to being treated that way is simply to be a responsible person! A reputation for responsibility has to be gotten the old-fashioned way: it has to be earned. And having been earned, it has to be carefully maintained. When we violate the principles of responsibility and accountability, it takes a long time to repair the damage we\u2019ve done to the way people perceive us.<\/p>\n
We lift a great burden from the shoulders of others when we embrace the idea of our own responsibility. When those we deal with every day know we can be counted on to do what\u2019s right and be accountable for our own actions, they can rest easy in their relationship with us. It\u2019s a magnificent gift when we can say to others (and mean it), \u201cI will hold up my end of our duties. You can count on me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Responsibility is often viewed as a negative concept these days, along with obligation, duty, and similar ideas. But doing our duty need not be a dreary business. If we choose, we can listen to the voice of conscience appreciatively, instead of grudgingly or disdainfully. It\u2019s mostly a matter of how we see life. Is it something to be refused or something to be received?<\/p>\n
I slept and dreamed that life was joy,
I awoke and saw that life was duty,
I acted, and behold duty was joy.
(Rabindranath Tagore)<\/p>\n
Gary Henry \u2013 WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com<\/p>\n