Some want to be a Guru on the mountain top where pilgrims go to seek wisdom.
Instead of sitting on the mountain top, why not keep pursuing your dreams and mission. More will want to learn from you as you are doing and living ….. than by sitting there waiting for others to seek you out.
Keep moving forward. Keep pursuing.
Leave a good legacy.
Years ago I heard a man say, “I began to do well because others were kind to me.” That would me true for me as well.
Being kind to others and investing in others so they can do well is part of leaving a good legacy.
Invest in others.
Leave a good legacy.
In 1958 my parents moved to Atlanta to pursue a dream. My dad was given an opportunity to advance his career. They moved away from family and friends for something that they thought was better.
Their decision to pursue something new gave me a path to run on that previously did not exist … and it has made all the difference.
A decision you make today can change the course of a generation. Leave a good legacy.
Your kids and grandkids will remember the “special” preparation to make something fun.
You can make things special, and it doesn’t cost much. My wife is the best.
Our table for a lunch yesterday had clippings from purple, red and golden bougainvilleas. It was beautiful.
Our grandkids loved a home made pistachio cake. They still talk about a scavenger hunt around our home just taking pictures with a phone.
The kids love looking at themselves in new photos printed monthly (just a few) on a bulletin board around my desk.
Simple, intention “things”, that little eyes remember. I hope for a lifetime.
Make it special and be present to enjoy it with them.
It is your legacy. Leave a good one.
What is the tone of your life….your parenting…your relationships?
During this week of Good Friday and Easter I am reading in the Bible. I noticed that the tone of Jesus was different from the religious leaders.
Jesus washed his followers feet, even the one who betrayed him. The greatest one in the room was a servant.
The religious leaders were angry and loud. They were trying to hold on to power and control. They were afraid of losing their authority.
So often we can find ourselves trying to lead others, and even our family, from power and fear instead of service.
Your family knows your tone….and they will remember it the rest of their lives. Make sure it is a tone of serving them.
It is your legacy. Leave a good one.
It is your life. It is your story. It is your legacy. Write it down.
Not everyone likes to write or writes well. Yet, when a story is written down, there is a lingering power of influence.
Either write your stories or have someone else write them. I have family photos, WWII photos and a few stories shared over the years from my family regarding my dad. However, the stories written by others provide the most lasting memories of the few short years I spent with him.
The month my dad died the company he worked for printed a story in their monthly newsletter. The article described his struggle with cancer while still working a full day and serving civic and charitable causes.
When he was asked why he kept so busy … he said, “ …. helping others, keeps me alive.”
I have forgotten most words spoken about my dad, but at least once a year I look at a folded newsletter in my sock drawer. It reminds me of his life of service.
His life, his story, his legacy has become my life of service and my story and now my legacy…..because it was written down.
Write it down.
Persistence, perseverance and endurance are key character qualities to model. As you tell stories of when you endured difficult circumstances, also include stories that may not be so serious. Here’s one of mine.
I learned a lot about persistence the day I shot my future son-in-law.
Fishing is not the only thing we do at my uncle’s farm. Many hours have been spent on the back porch reading, napping and “visiting”. From the porch you can see both ponds, two old country barns, shade trees and a clothesline hooked between two posts.
One day our family gathered on the screened porch when suddenly we became aware of an unidentifiable movement. I’m not sure who saw it first, but a long snake had slithered through the azaleas and it’s head reared up and pressed his face up against the screen. It was eye level with the occupants on the love seat. You can only imagine the hysteria that took place. We found high ground quickly standing on the furniture. We were screaming even though a steel screen protected us.
Most logic had evaporated from the educated brain pool on the porch, so I “brave the wild” with the only weapon that I could find… my handy dandy, low-powered BB gun. It was about time to graduate it from shooting cans off the fence post. With a carton of BBs in hand, I loaded twenty BBs and commenced firing… this was it…time to save the family.
The snake had wound its way through the thick azaleas so there was no way for me to determine my effectiveness or to see the entire snake. Load and shoot. Only half of the shots were getting anywhere near the snake’s head. As I reloaded and continued firing, those on the porch began screaming and dancing uncontrollably. Then I heard, “Dad! Stop! You just shot (name withheld – a future son-in-law)”. Apparently a couple of shots had hit the brick wall behind the azaleas and ricocheted through the screen hitting him in the calf. A complete circus of craziness echoed through the country.
I repositioned my aim away from my son-in-law and continued the assault. It took endless rounds before the feat was accomplished. Dragging the snake out with a rake revealed that he was over 6 feet.
The force of the BB was not strong enough to penetrate the skin, but it was strong enough to give the snake a bad headache. Small actions, done consistently, will be productive over time.
All participants survived and now live to tell the story of the day I shot one of my son-in-laws, instead of my story of persistence.
It is your life. It is your story. It is your legacy.
Persist.
Playing, joking and doing stupid tricks are all part of leaving a legacy.
Do you have fun with your kids or grandkids? Regardless of who you are or where you are from, your kids will remember the crazy things you do together. Smiling, laughing and sometimes breaking things create stories that will be told at dinner tables for years.
My wife and I will have some of the grandkids over tonight. Their only request is to make pancakes and flip them over our shoulders to a plate 10 feet away. Last time it was pure craziest. They talked about it for weeks.
If we keep this up, this will be part our our legacy. – Moma and Papa know how to have fun.
It is your legacy. Have some fun!
You are going to leave a legacy. Intentionally telling your stories will build and guide it.
I don’t know if this is a true quote. It is probably adapted. Someone once quoted Winston Churchill as saying, “History will be kind to me, because I intend to write it.” There is a key principle. Whoever writes history controls the discussion.
We are not writing history, but we are gathering memorable events, people and happenings that the entire family knows. We are talking about everyday life. We are building our legacy.
Ask your kids to name one or two of the funniest, biggest, most dramatic, craziest etc. things that you have experienced as a family. Find a noble theme that describes what happened like courage or persistence. Or find a weird slogan that brings back the laughter, “don’t give grandma prunes for Thanksgiving dinner.” Then tell it often. They will remember.
It is your legacy and you intend to write it.
Not all sentimental possessions make good stories.
My family had a lawnmower that dated back to the 1940s. It was a push mower and required physical strength to turn the blades. I remember pushing it 50 years ago. It was terrible.
Yet, I kept it. It was sentimental but not practical. One of my kids wanted to use it where they lived. It did not work well and it was not fixable. When asked if I still wanted it I said, “let it go.” There was not a story attached to the mower.
In leaving a legacy, the goal is not a sentimental journey, but a compelling story that encourages the next generation to live today.
A few boxes hold my sentimental stuff and my kids usually politely yawn. I like that.
It is your legacy. Give your kids compelling stories.
Leave A Good Legacy 