Accountability

 

 

Some do not mind

Having some responsibility

But to be held responsible?

Oh no! That’s accountability!

 

It is here, my friend,

That it all goes down-hill!

Responsibility defines the pay

Accountability is the bitter pill.

 

Let us get it clear!

The two don’t mean the same,

One is the job

The other is the pain.

 

How can I draw a salary

Without a job?

But regarding accountability

This becomes odd.

 

If only I could draw the pay

Without the job

Then there would be no accountability

And that won’t be odd.

 

Created for a purpose!

That’s what we’ve been told,

Accountability follows responsibility;

That’s how it unfolds.

 

Created presupposes

There must be a Creator,

Therefore, accountability is a reality

And not just a caper.

 

I will have to face Him!

I must give Him an account

For the time I spend here

Whatever the amount!

 

I can’t live as I like,

I must keep this in sight,

I will be held responsible

I must get it right!

 

God is the Creator!

The Almighty God I mean,

There is none beside Him

And none in between.

 

He holds me responsible

For the purpose I must fulfill

And such purpose, I understand,

Is according to His will.

 

So, accountability is a must

We can’t wish it away

God has set aside a time

When it will be judgment day.

 

He will be the sole judge,

All records will be there

And all will have to give an account

About what they did here.

 

None will be excluded:

Neither the poor nor the rich,

Accountability is a divine act

Not a caper or trick.

 

Many people today,

Considered brilliant and smart

Practise running from the light

And operate in the dark...

 

But, all deeds will be exposed

Whether wrong or right

And those done in the dark

Will be also brought to light.

 

For those of you, my friends,

For whom accountability is the issue,

 None shall escape its oversight:

Not me and not you.

 

Stewart Russell © February 11, 2022

 

Life’s Lessons

He bestrode the narrow world like a colossus

Yet a little while later he lay in the dust,

Lifeless then, his words carried no weight

His detractors before having vented their hate.

There were many who in their lofty positions

Behaved as though they were a law unto themselves

But today they no longer exist having passed away

Leaving only memories and photos on our shelves.

Yet these life lessons are not readily learnt

Particularly by those who follow in their path

And like their predecessors they too follow suit

And are plunged ironically down the same shaft.

History ignored, it has been said, is likely to be repeated

This sentiment has been proven mostly to be true,

Clearly the time is now when we must be aware

That unless we do differently we too will fall through.

“Not me, you mean you; it could never happen to me,”

Is the response when confronted with the same,

It is always the other person who falls for the trap

Yes, the other person against whom is this claim.

Life is particularly unpredictable I would remind

And what it dishes out can happen to you,

None of us has control over the vicissitudes of life

Only God Almighty is privy to that view.

The mighty and weak, their outcome is the same,

The rich and the poor no different they be,

The grim reaper respects neither class nor creed,

He conquers all: both the slave and the free.

In life money is the voice most are keen to hear

While fame and power are not too far behind,

The learned and the not so bright are in the same frame

But them all some day the great leveler will find.

The fickle nature of life is not only seen in death

But oft in the harsh realities that come our way,

These are sometimes more difficult to comprehend

And for some death is the desired option at the end of the day.

  

For these suicide was far more agreeable than life

That’s why death became their solution through it all,

The poor and destitute as well as the wealthy and powerful

Have on occasions capitulated to the suicidal call.

It matters not how great you think you might be

Or even how abundantly wealthy you really are,

Life could suddenly deal you the most vicious of hands

That neither your greatness nor wealth would be on par.

A debilitating illness or loss of accumulated wealth,

Some unforeseen circumstance for which you couldn’t plan,

It may be loss of sight or as simple as an amputated limb

It could be one or both or your dependable right hand.

It could be a stay in the hospital for an indefinite time

Perhaps due to an accident for which you were not liable,

Or some other unplanned for “rarely ever happens” event

From the clutches of which it was virtually inescapable.

You see life is a vapor that only appears for a little time,

It is like the early morning fog that dissipates with the sun,

 It is like the flower of a plant that flourishes for a while

Then in the heat of the day it comes to the end of its run.

We are just as vulnerable in the face of the vagaries of life

Better to learn from another’s example and if possible avoid his strife,

For as sure as night follows day we too will suffer his fate

If rather than accept life’s lesson we enter in at his gate.

A word to the wise then is sufficient

And I trust that this reader is wise,

If so you will accept these words of wisdom

And life’s lessons you won’t despise.

Stewart Russell © 2017

Anonymous

 

I won’t tell who I am

But by the end you’ll know my name

For there will be no doubt in your mind

Regarding my popularity and fame.

I have been around a very long time

How long I wouldn’t even mention

Understand though as you read this

I was before the first invention.

Did I say before the first invention?

Well that is not exactly accurate

Fig leaves came just before I arrived

And then after I had my first date.

I have seen skirmish after skirmish

And I have never missed a war

And the things that you like about life

I most definitely abhor.

I walk among the rich

And I keep company with the poor

With me kings and queens affiliate

Stick around and I’ll tell you some more.

People just love to hate me

And I am blamed for every lost

Insurance companies dare not disregard me

To them I am a significant cost.

I fear no woman, I fear no man

I am not intimidated by girl or boy

The very things that advance their lives

Are often in my employ.

I am older than the oldest man

More relevant than today

And in most of the cases I have tackled

I have mostly had my way.

Young and old are acquainted with me

I have been to every home

I am at ease with the biggest crowd

But I am just as comfortable alone.

It would appear I am omnipresent

And your nature is suited to me

I revelled in hatred and anger

And in human hostility.

I reside in every country

Not a single family escapes me

I have no time to sit on thrones

For I am too busy bringing misery.

I have flown on many a plane

I have crossed every single sea

I have traversed the densest jungles

And the deserts have not escaped me.
 

I make it my business to bring fear

Separation is my portfolio

I am the Minister of distress and harassment

And presided in many an overthrow.

I interrupt the best-made plans

And institute operations of my own

I make mock sport at their projections

From time immemorial my business has grown.

Occasionally I encounter failure

But success is just around the bend

And before you can say cock robin

There is another funeral to attend.

My ads are in every country’s paper

In some tabloids page by page

You’ll never read your name there though

It doesn’t matter your age.

Which brings me to the significant point

That I have never missed a funeral

Some have been simple, some elaborate

Depending on the status of the people.

I am often the talk of the town

For some I guarantee a generous income

Particularly them who live off others dying

But they too have their course to run.

One thing you could say for me

I do not favour or discriminate

There is no amount that you can pay me

And when your time comes you will be the late.

I never take a bribe and I do not grudge

For such I have no need

In any case my quiver is always full

On account of man’s avarice and his greed.

I recall it was the very first spring

And I was privy to a certain conversation

The instructions were clear as clear can be

But the recipients followed another's direction.

From that era until the present time

Every day has been a field day

I have never lacked for victims

For invariably they come my way.

In any endeavour there are highs and lows

And my greatest high was my premiere low

For a moment there I had the Prince of Life

But I was forced to let him go.

Three days I held him in the belly of the earth

I was so sure that he was mine

But suddenly he was no longer there

That experience is difficult to define.
 

I have had two partners throughout time

And we really felt the victory was ours

But my sting was removed and their victory short lived

Swallowed up by His infinite power.

I am the resurrection and the life

The Creator of life once said

And those who put their trust in Him

Will one day be delivered from the dead.

In the meantime I shall continue my business

Working with partners two and three

And taking consolation in the very fact

That I will be around for eternity.

For those who die in the Prince of Life

Will be gathered together with him

And those in him at his return

Will over me the greatest victory win

But those who reject the Prince of life

Will be mine for ever and ever

Eternally separated from their Maker and Judge

Eternal separation from the Saviour

Stewart Russell (@) 2016