Sunday, November 29, 2009

Legacy

What will be left when I'm not left anymore?
Does everyone wonder this, or is it a unique question?
It's odd to me that I have a birthday coming up, and, instead of plans or gifts, I'm contemplating ends.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not suicidal or even considering the fact that my end may for any particular reason may be in even the next few years. That's not it at all.
I just have been thinking about my life lately, and wondering what impact it will make, and what impact it will have made by the time it's all said and done.
I have images in my head, maybe some of them are from books or movies, like that Leonardo Di'Caprio Romeo & Juliette, or the scene from Around The World... Or maybe it got into my head from the MLK jr biography I read as a kid... Some big old Southern chapel somewhere, with someone singing loudly, Amazing Grace, perhaps. Or maybe a Beatles song. Or a Baha'i spiritual type song.
None the less, knowing the people I have, who would be there? Would I have made a difference to them? Or would it be the people who feel they are obligated to make an appearance, as it's been at so many funerals and other big deal ceremonies? Would it just be a few people from my family- my parents, my sister... Or would it be people I'd met throughout my life, people of different races, backgrounds, not just military, either... Would it be the memorial service of someone who made a change in the world? I love the quotes about how a small effort can have a powerful impact.... realistically, though, each of us can only do so much.
I've come a long way as a person, but that's just me.
I don't have the first clue how long I'll live or what my ultimate limitations will prove to be.
I just need to figure out exactly how I want to leave this world, what my legacy will be...

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