People Make Excuses

From the Lifesmith Group album, "Pablum."

People make excuses for things they could not do
Why they’re fat, why they’re late, why their payment’s overdue
People shirk responsibility and sacrifice respect
Why they failed, why they forgot, why their answer’s incorrect
An easy way out, so it seems, of getting out of hard work’s way
But neglecting one’s accountability is laziness’ highway.

Completing a task from beginning to end is difficult for some
“I had no time,” “Something came up,” “I had to pick up my son,”
Excuses you hear everyday, so common, so shallow, so trite
“I mailed the check,” “My car broke down,” “I didn’t see the light,”
They insult your intelligence with their sophomoric guile,
Comes across so disrespecting, flippant, and infantile.

Yet tolerate it we most often do, dare we call them an outright liar
Cause every song has its singer, and the wolf even needs a crier
Once in a while we all get caught unprepared it’s true
Our fallibility precludes any penchant we might have to sue
We say, “I’ll believe you this time, but don’t let it happen again,”
With some folks it’s not a question of why, only a question of when.

So take the bull by the horns, take the entire blame sometimes
People respect you more if you admit you have done the crime
May it pain you to give excuses for shortcomings you commit
Plan a little better, use your time wisely, sharpen up your wit
You might even bare the burden of others, in a helpful way reveal
A new way to be, humbler and wiser, a jewelled creaturely appeal.