A cold December morning greets the Midwest as students enter a warm high school lobby. One of the last students to enter the high school dons earplugs and removes a pistol from his backpack. He clutches the piece of cold steel in his hands, a dazed look in his eyes. Then, he begins to shoot. A barrage of bullets rip into the crowd of students, dropping eight three of whom never will get up again. After the screams begin, the firing has stopped and the smoke has cleared, we see the student slumped against a wall. A fellow student has pushed him against the wall and asked him not to continue shooting. The gunman, a 14-year-old boy, says in amazement, I can’t believe I’d do this.

By now the world is aware of the tragedy that Heath High School in Paducah, Ky., experienced on Dec. 1. The news and media have painted their screens with images of this loss while trying to make sense of it all. They’ve asked the countless questions of Why? or How? this could happen. They’ve met under winter skies and mourned.

But through it all, the question of What? has not been raised. What can be done that will prevent this from ever happening again? That question is rarely asked, even though it is the first and most important question that should be asked.

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When the word responsibility springs to the minds of most people, it usually involves getting to work or school on time and promptly paying your bills. The vein of responsibility is usually self- glorifying. Well, responsibility is not that simple responsibility is a commitment. It’s a commitment to yourself, your family, and most importantly, to the society around you.

In a commitment to yourself, you take on the responsibility to better your mind, body and soul. You strive for an objective education to gain knowledge of self, and to develop and become aware of your thoughts and beliefs. You strive for a healthy life, for the mind cannot work without the body it shouldn’t be abused or contaminated. That, in brief, is your responsibility to yourself.

In a commitment to your family, you decide to take an active role in the development of your children. You instead of a television or other outside forces are there to watch and guide your children. You raise them and teach them what is right. You encourage them to strive for their own betterment of self. You make a commitment to be a responsible parent and to build a strong family because our children should not be forgotten as so many of us have been.

The most important commitment, though, is the commitment that must be made to our society. Being active, committed and concerned about your society goes so far past giving that donation to the Salvation Army, or going to church every Sunday that doesn’t make you responsible and concerned.

I feel responsible because I am responsible. We all are responsible.

Many of you will disregard this column. You’ll say that you aren’t responsible for anyone but yourself. You’ll say that people are at fault for their own situations. You’ll go off tonight and drink away reality, and wake up tomorrow not remembering a word of this column.

My words won’t change the world, but I will go against everything that it stands for. I’ll live by example, and touch and raise as many of the living dead as possible. With Allah’s help, I can.

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We are all responsible for what happened at Heath High School. Perhaps I’m just a believer in it takes a village to raise a child. But instead of grieving and tying little yellow ribbons to trees, I’m going to take back all that was taken away. Namest.