None of your explanations for evilness
will restore goodness.
None of your reasons for misconduct
change any of the facts.
You're either faithful and true,
conscientious and consistent,
honest and honorable;
or you're not.
There's no debatable preponderance,
no nebulous negotiation,
no accommodating compromise,
no ill-defined demarcation.
It doesn't matter what your excuse is,
because everybody's got one,
or more.
Standing sure and keeping faith is simple.
Important things are always simple,
and complexities consist of simple elements;
but doing simple things is always hard ...
harder than anyone imagined.
The only thing that truly matters
is your actual performance
from ordinary routine to extreme crisis ... Did you keep your word? Did you do it when it counted? Were you there when it made a difference?
If not,
then this world doesn't need you!
by Pavlovich Bakunin
... who is retired from the U.S. Army, and now writes freelance.
