According to the “MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice” from Temple University’s department of psychology, critical portions of the brain of those under eighteen is still in development for years to come. Some of these areas govern things like; impulse control, planning, and thinking ahead. With this information in mind, it would be reasonable to say that someone as young as twelve should not be held accountable for their actions. Perhaps that is why in our culture, teens and pre-teens are not seen as responsible individuals. Responsibility is one of the most important values for a well-rounded individual; however, there are several different meanings to the word “responsibility”. The events that transpired throughout my time with my dog, Leo, and even after his passing, allowed me to ponder on what it meant to truly be responsible. Responsibility is important because if you are not responsible, you will not receive the respect and trust of your peers or superiors; you need to be able to take responsibility for your mistakes. Responsibility makes you more independent as well as reliable. To be responsible also means to understand the concept of consequence, which is essential towards making intelligent, well thought out decisions. As stated before, it is reasonable to say that someone as young as twelve is not considered a responsible individual; however, I am proof that teaching responsibility to a twelve year old is not impossible. When someone is forced to face the reality of the death of a loved one, even a pet, they become more mature. With maturity comes a sense of accountability. That was the case with me after the death of my beloved dog, Leo. As young as I was I still understood that the death of my dog was partially my fault, had I given him more attention he would not have run away and gotten ran over.
People are not born responsible; they learn to be, because at some point in their life they must. They also have to able to take responsibility for their mistakes when they do not adhere to their responsibilities; that was the first thing my dog, Leo, taught me. The responsibility I gained from having a dog proved to be a useful life lesson that still serves me to this day. Because of Leo I had new obligations; I had to feed him, clean him, clean up after him and play with him, however, the latter did not happen as much as it should. Perhaps that was why he dug a hole under the fence in our backyard and ran away, and as fate would have it, eventually was hit by a car. At first I blamed the man that ran Leo over, then I thought it was just the way God had intended it. But later I realized that I was actually the one at fault; were it not for me neglecting to pay attention to Leo, he may not have seen the need to run away. Whether it is because we have to get a job, move out or pay bills; at some point we all have to tend to certain obligations, or pay the consequence.
To be able to grasp the concept of consequence is essential towards being a responsible individual. My life would be much harder had I not learned to understand that for every action there is a consequence. For example, I do my homework because I know that failing to do so would negatively impact my future. I used to think that because I understood the subject, doing the homework on it was not necessary. I saw my grades gradually drop even though I performed well on tests and quizzes. I did not understand that it was my duty to complete my homework assignments; I saw them merely as cumbersome and time wasting. Responsibility is such a big part of our lives; sometimes we do not even realize it. Some of us think ourselves responsible, that is until we