RESPONSIBILITY
Responsibility is the concept of executing one's duties of society, of the family, and to oneself; responsibility is also taking the effect of one's actions. There are many people in this society that follow through with their duties as people, and sometimes atone for their occasional misguidance. There are young adults who have to take care of their younger siblings, their pets, their sickly parents, among all their other chores. There are people who have a duty to society, to save people from fires, violent individuals, legal issues, and much more. There are even unwritten responsibilities that some people might have to abide by: Keeping an eye on a friend in need, protecting loved ones and others, or quite possibly just making sure that someone is having a good day.
Many people take their responsibilities seriously, making sure that whatever they are entrusted with is taken care of; however, there are people who don't take responsibility for a number of things. There are people who don't take care of their families, who don't watch out for their siblings, who don't go to school, and possibly won't accept the consequences of their actions.
I am one person who is responsible, I'm not a person who's one of the fold that don't do what they need to do. I do what I have to do for others, and for myself to be the best in my skill-set and my fields of expertise. My biggest responsibility currently is going through school, cultivating my skills of art and writing, and being the male role model for my little nephews. Two years ago, I had a conversation with my friend Whitney; she was a twenty two year old make-up artist for many new up and coming independent films. We were talking about my future, and why it was so important to work as hard as possible in school. She told me about her time in school when she was having a rough time at home, and that her grades were not looking so good. She worked twice as hard, even went to court about her diploma, but to no avail. The school we had both went to was not a college preparation school, and did not grade most of our work, which we had done repeatedly so that they would recognize it and put the marks on our report cards.
She did not get her diploma until she had turned twenty one the year before, which I thought was awful. I pledged that I would work twice as hard as any of my classmates from then on, so that I could show her my diploma, and how hard I worked to obtain it; I haven't stopped working hard since. But my responsibility doesn't stop there. My responsibilities stretch as far as being the male influence in my three nephews' lives. I was twelve when they were born, and they are five years old today, going on six in May. My sister did not know who the father was, so my nephews were fatherless, and only had a grandfather and me as their only role models of their own gender.
My mom's first husband, Ernie, was getting re-married to a new woman, and would have to be working extra hard on his construction jobs, even after his knee surgery which he recently underwent. Ernie rarely has time these days to make visits to my nephews, so I fill in the gaps, even though I have a busy schedule. I make sure they enjoy the day when I visit them, or they visit me, spending quality time with them. I give Devon, Jayden, and Corey happy memories when I see them because then they can go back to their own homes and recollect when I spent time with them, when a male influence was in their life for a day.
Sometimes I have to be responsible to myself as well, because artists can't neglect their artistic side. An artist has a creative child in them, just wriggling to burst out. I was a colorful story-teller when I was a child, always making up these miraculous tales and worlds while playing by myself. I had little friends growing up, so I forged fantastical tales from my own imagination. In the seventh grade, I drew elaborate stick figures and stories to go with them, and eventually was taught to properly draw the human body by a comic artist who worked for Marvel. I consumed whatever information I could, reading books on drapery and wrinkles on clothes, to dynamic poses, and an entire book devoted on hand positions. This summer I went to a pre-college art program. It tested and stretched my artistic abilities, the way I operate, and the way I think as an artist. Nurturing the creative side is a definite responsibility because if it is neglected, I could lose my identity as a human being, and become cold and bitter.
Responsibility is not only a sociological need by a community, it helps condition individuals and strengthens them as a whole, so that they can be the best person they can be.
