Will you leave a legacy?
Today I heard about 3 deaths, its never a”nice” thought and although neither of the three people are in my immediate oikos, I still got to thinking about life and its transient nature as one does.
The one guy who passed away was also on Twitter and I took a look at his profile and recent tweets, saying things like “what to have for lunch” etc One minute he was here wondering what to eat, the next he was gone.
Perhaps this line of thinking is not very unfamiliar for those who are faced with death, I have been here before, feeling introspective, but how can one stay engaged in feeling more “in touch” with reality, with what’s really important?!
What is really important? Seems a simple question, but if you really think about it, perhaps the answer is not that simple. Are you focused on what’s really important to you and those you love or do all the trivial things in life consume all your time?Are there things you still want to do and say, things you procrastinate because you feel invincible because lets face it, we do.
What if your life is taken from you unexpectedly, what legacy will you leave behind? Is your striving for more money and more power really important, or will you be remembered more for taking the time to really take interest and invest in someone’s life, to lend a hand to give a smile.
Yes, sounds soppy, very “Chicken Soup For The Soul”, but I don’t really care if its soppy ’cause I think its true and as much as I will probably forget how I feel right now in a weeks time as I bitch about being cut off by a taxi driver, if anything today I am aware of what’s important.
I will try hold onto this feeling, within reason and I hope if anything you will too, even if just for today - love those you love, smell the flowers, admire the sunset, smile at a stranger, be kind - life is short, make sure you are living and not just existing.
I have learnt that as much as we would love to hold onto those very thoughts every moment of our living life, we do tend to let them slip a little. What is important though is to remind oneself occasionally (hopefully daily), without forgetting. It is great to see others that share in this mindset because it is a sad reality that the majority of people who read your blog, will have forgotten the lesson in a few hours time. Some people only know its true meaning when they are forced to, and lucky enough to survive a situation which teaches them just that…
I really dig the last part of the post:
“be kind - life is short, make sure you are living and not just existing”
So true. This is something I needed to read today. Thank you for writing it
All I can say is appearances can be deceiving, for someone with your exterior you really are a sensitive, kind soul
Hey Mike,
Glad it resonated with you. Was more cathartic writing it for me, so I’m glad it could touch someone else, even if just in a small way
I’ve been battling for some time now to come up with an inspirational Editor’s letter. It used to come so easily, but the inspirational well seems to have dried up a bit in the effort of simply “putting out the daily fires” … Your blog reminds me so much of Dec 2007 (the accident) - I’ll email you my Editor’s letter that followed. I put my heart and soul into a few thereafter, whilst the message was strong, but like all things, they faded. Believe it or not you’ve reawakened the will to want to motivate and inspire again. Thank you for that..
You rock Mel. More time will be made to create the message I need to create… the message that was expected and is expected from me.