Responsibility

I have a cat. His name is Saki. He is awesome, and he's my dude. He expects me to take care of him. Sometimes I don't want to, but I took on a responsibility when he moved into the house so I always do. Because Saki is my dude. He needs me to look after him. He doesn't need much. He needs water. He needs food. He needs love. He needs the litter boxes cleaned (not having thumbs makes that hard for the furry little bugger). He needs a friend. And he does what he can to look after me in return.

Every time we turn on a movie, and I have the recliner kicked out, there's Saki. He's curled up on the leg rest, nuzzled into my calf. Because he can't do much. He can't tell you everything will be ok when shit goes wrong (although he tries; little dude doesn't stop talking). He can't hug you. He can't try and help you fix problems. But he knows when something is wrong and, if it is, you'll never get rid of him. He'll go wherever you are, and meow until you talk back to him. Because he understands that his human--his friend-- isn't doing ok.

For years we've assumed animals are stupid, but they're not. They communicate, just not the way we do. While that's a conversation for another day, the point stands. What's sad is that for everyone out there that has pets, they haven't learned what their fuzzy friends try to teach them.

We do a shit job of taking care of each other. I'm not talking about politics. Hell, I'm not even talking about marriages or specific types of relationships. I'm talking about basic human interaction; I'm talking about the things we do day-in and day-out that may not mean a whole helluva lot to us, but can mean the universe to another human.

It doesn't take much to be good to someone. It doesn't take much to go out of your way to defend someone that's getting run down by an asshole boss. It doesn't take much to pay a compliment when one is warranted, and takes even less when it's justified. It doesn't take much to stand between a bully and someone that bully is trying to take advantage of. It only takes observing things, and being willing to take action when required.

And yet we fail at it.

EVERY. SINGLE. FUCKING. DAY.

Why is that? Does it really take that much emotional or mental effort? I already know the answer--it doesn't. Does it really produce that much of a risk? I doubt most people think through it; they don't even see it. Does it really take that much from you to do the right thing? Trick question: doing the right thing is a benefit to you, and it means worlds to others.

Is it because we don't want to stand out? Is it because we're afraid of being judged ourselves? Is it because maybe we don't know the whole story? All these questions are valid, in certain circumstances, and all of the answers are lacking when it comes to walking away from the opportunity to be a good person.

The moral of this short article is simple. I'm tired, guys, in more ways than you know. I'm tired of watching people try to tear each other apart. I'm tired of watching those who don't know attempt to use volume to overpower those who do. I'm tired of so many things. But most of all- I'm tired of watching how we treat each other. I'm tired of watching good people treat each other as strangers, like pieces of shit that don't deserve a kind word.

I'm tired of people shirking their responsibility to each other. I'm tired of seeing folks that go to church on Sundays think that's the only day of the week they need to try and emulate Christ. We all live in a society . We, at a minimum, owe each other the benefit of the doubt. Think about how you treat your fuzzy friends. They can't even speak to you. Not really. Try assuming that maybe, just maybe, taking care of someone else is also something that works in a similar way.

I'm not saying to assume everyone is one of your pets. They're not lesser than you. They can speak and communicate with you. And I'm not saying try to save everyone. But we should be taking care of each other, and we don't. So think about it. It only takes one good action to alter the course of someone's day. In the history of this country one action, one trigger pull, started the cascade to the greatest societal experiment in world history.

NEVER underestimate your impact. NEVER look down on your actions, good or bad. NEVER assume that you don't have an impact. You do, and people feel it. Think about that.