The Legacy
In the end, the people who show up at your funeral are the bearers of your legacy. They carry your stories, your memories, and your lessons into the future. They are the proof that you lived, you loved, and you mattered. —- right?
So, live your life in a way that when the final curtain falls, the people who show up at your funeral are the ones who truly knew you, loved you, and will celebrate your life and the positive impact you had on theirs. Remember, it’s not about the number of people at your funeral, it’s about the lives you’ve touched along your journey.
“Live so that when your children think of fairness, caring, and integrity, they think of you.” – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
The legacy is something that many people talk about, but I don’t think that many people take legacy seriously. The idea of legacy is “what you left behind” and many people want this to be a positive thing, a good feeling, something to be proud of.
You don’t take your legacy seriously if you don’t act now on that in which you want people to feel through reflection. In other words, if you are like “one day or someday” I am going to do something that will be impactful and helpful, you’ve already messed it up. There is no “someday” there is a “Sunday” which is today, so you can choose today to start doing that which is so important today of course.
Most people don’t and won’t. I can’t express why they don’t do it. Maybe they are afraid. Maybe they don’t have courage. Maybe they don’t really mean it. It is a “good intention” but not a “good action.”
Legacy isn’t important to me because I’ve come to realize that it is very temporary. Unless technology changes to extend my life, I won’t be here for another 3 generations of my children. They may have some record of me down the road, but I’ll be remembered by none. If my legacy is that I’ve instilled goodness in my children and they’ve carried this forward to their children, that is great but again, this isn’t something that I need to think about. It is something that I should be doing anyway. It isn’t something I should call out as if I need to write a book about it.
I now focus on what I can do today.
What can I do now?
What drives me to do the best things I can do to have a positive impact on people in my circles?
If I can have a greater impact, what actions do I need to take?
When I feel weak, how do I get the courage? Who do I call? What do I do?
I have to reason through these things today not tomorrow. What are you known for today?
When people think about you, how do they feel?
How do you feel when you think about the people in your life? Who made you sad? Who made you happy? Who are you to them?
Some people talk about this concept of when you die, you go through a loving and kind life review. What if that is true? Did you live a life you could be proud of? Did you do the things you wanted to do? Did you take action when you thought maybe you should do something? Did you say “someday” I am going to do something?
If you are thinking about it, in my estimation, you should stop thinking about it and start doing it. If you are serious about your legacy, you’ll take action now. If you don’t, your legacy will be whatever it is that you wind up with not that which you believed you wanted.
The reason why is because you chose NOT to do it.
What are you going to do?
I am taking action… I hope you do whatever it is that you want to do and that your legacy is what you want it to be.
As for me… no legacy just life..