What Is My Responsibility To Or For Others?

Trees are changing in Texas.

This is a topic I anticipate returning to frequently, so I am just going to touch on it lightly today. Back a few weeks ago, I tried to define what my values were. To my mind, four of these values relate to my having some sort of sense of responsibilty to my fellow man. These would be:

Fairness: Treat others as you wish to be treated.

Opportunity: People must have the chance to better themselves financially, educationally, spiritually

Abundance: Successful people have a moral obligation to spread and create opportunity and prosperity for others as best they can.

Accountability: All people must take responsibility for the consequences of their actions

In some sense Accountability does not fit into the responsibility to or for others because it really is more of a personal responsibility, each person is responsible for cleaning up his/her own mess. So, perhaps I can ignore that one for the sake of this discussion.

Where does my responsibility to or for those around me begin? In my mind, simply being alive obligates me to my fellows to some degree. It is a part of being human. Life is difficult, and to the degree that we set our own needs and desires aside to help those around us; that is the degree by which we transcend being simply human.

Selfishness is the essential instinct that drives the individual to survive. Cooperation is the essential instinct that allows communities to form. Both are necessary drives. Without both operating in our minds, our species would probably not have made it. Both instincts are wholesome and necessary. Living in with these in balance is one of the great challenges of being a full human being.

As I said, I will revisit this topic.

Good Morning Goddess Brigit, my name is Andy and I am an alcoholic. I have been kept sober since Imbolc 2001 by Your grace and Your grace alone. I'd like to take this moment to thank You, my Higher Power, for this daily reprieve. Today is a good day to be sober. Thank You, Blessed Be.