They say that being a grown-up means being accountable to people other than yourself. They say that it’s about responsibility and being sensible. That’s why children are allowed to make more mistakes than we are — they don’t know any better.
We do. Maybe not much better, but still better.
And so at a certain point, people expect you to be able to justify your actions, explain them and then take responsibility for them.
‘You’re not a child anymore,’ the judge says before sending you to maximum security prison. Your actions are accountable to the state, to society, to god, to the freaking stars in the deep black sky. Society hangs criminals, condemns evil and indemnifies the innocent wronged, in the name of accountability. You are responsible for your actions and you’d better damn well have a good explanation for them.
It’s not a bad thing, accountability. So why do I resent it?
