Legacy

Last week we buried my grandfather. He was ninety-four. During those years he did a lot of living. He raised a family and saw his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren be born. Some might say he lived a good long life. We, his family, remembered and celebrated his life during a service on Wednesday. We laughed and cried and told stories to commemorate his life. We came together as a family and said goodbye to our Papaw one last time. Two days later, we were saying goodbye to Landon McIntyre, a twenty-four-year-old young man who happened to be very dear and close to my family, as well. A sudden heart-attack took this young man's life in his prime, leaving behind a grieving fiancee', crushed family and bewildered friends. The week made for a stark contrast and much reflection on this strange and often confusing convention we call life.

Watching the old and the young taken from this life in such indiscriminate fashion left me searching for answers. My usual nature to apply some philosophical viewpoint to the situation was silenced. No words came last week. At times my thoughts would try to organize and wrap the circumstance in nice rhetoric.  Then my head would shake as I realized the sheer foolishness of trying to put in words  something I scarcely understood. 

An old man died.  A young man died.  That was all I could say for sure.  Each left his legacy and mark on his world for however long he was given to do so.  The people close around would see no more the physical actions and words that had come to define these two men.  That time was over.  Remembered now is what was done.  Forever etched now into the psyche of those that knew them is the kindness rendered and words spoken.   Nothing can be added.  Nothing can be deleted.  The legacy is cast.

The difference you make in your world, however great or small, begins each day when you wake up and breath in.  What you do with your day writes your legacy for your family and friends to live with forever.  If today was your last, what would it be?  The possibility and potential that could be, must be.  There is no time for little things.  There is no pet peeve.  Pet is short for petty.  Love your family.  Go the extra mile for a friend.  Champion the cause of the down-trodden you may have only met this morning.  At the end of each day, you should be able to look in the mirror and genuinely be proud of the way it turned out as much as it concerned you, your words and your actions. 

No more “as good as” and no more “better than.”  My life is its own mark.  No need to compare it with others.  Whether my next breath is my last or one of many more, I will treat it as if it were to mark me for eternity.  Because, in actuality, it does.