Responsible party

The Price of Greatness is Responsibility (Winston Churchill)

There are countless quotes from brilliant masters of literature, philosophy and politics that drive home the importance of responsible action.  The aforementioned quote, attributed to Winston Churchill, is one of my personal favorites.  I love it both for its simplicity, and for its truth.  There is no greatness achieved without payment of responsibility received.  And in ascribing greatness in his declaration, Churchill covered all of the important bases; freedom, success, victory, knowledge, purpose, etc.  Responsibility is essential to all of these achievements.

Who is responsible? Where is my responsibility?  Where is your responsibility?  Does it begin and end at our front doors?  I take care of “mine” and you take care of “yours?”  Responsibility, I contend, begins and ends at our fingertips.  It is an endless energy extending from our outreaching hand, and coming right back to ourselves.  We first take responsibility for our own actions, non-action and reactions, then we take responsibility for our fellow man.

When we inhale, we fully trust and expect that there is sufficient oxygen to fill our lungs.  Just as the Universe assumes responsibility for our capacity to breathe, so must we assume responsibility to be there for our compatriots.  It is in embracing our responsibility with compassion and gratitude that we will find our own greatness, as well as our communal greatness.