Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Legacy

‎"If I could leave a legacy, it would be to have taught a child 
and to have made a difference in his life; 
to rescue a student from hopelessness 
and guide him to a life that includes a love of learning."
 - Thomas Escott (6/17/1949 - 3/21/2010)


Legacy.

thefreedictionary.com defines the term legacy as, "Something handed down from an ancestor or a predecessor or from the past."


As I look back, I ask myself...
  • What do I want to leave behind?  
  • What insights and motivations do I want to instill in others? 
  • What dust do I want my followers to walk in?
As I pour what I've learned into others, what do I want to be SURE they get from me? What heritage am I building?  What inheritance will I leave behind?  How will I be sure that I accomplish leaving a legacy before... I leave?


Tom Escott did. 


I became acquainted with Tom through Facebook, and quickly grew to appreciate his sharp wit, his intoxicating joy of life, and his badge of honor that was passed on to his sons.  Cyberspace was the only place I ever got to see Tom.  I truly regret not being able to meet him in person, which I was supposed to do on his 61st birthday: June 17, 2010.  Unfortunately, cancer took him from this life before our planned meeting at the wedding of his son to my daughter.  Although he had departed physically, he was still an integral part of that event, and...

his legacy lives on. 

It lives on through his sons, his former students, and those who loved him dearly.  It lives on in his wisdom.  It will continue to live on through his sons and their children, as they learn of and follow his legacy.

I trust, as I continue to consider what legacy I want to leave, I will consciously and consistently live the legacy I want to leave so that, when I've left...

the legacy that I want to leave will live on....
 


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