Legacy

 

“Each day is a musical note I use to compose the symphony of life”.     

– Paulo Coelho

Isn’t that legacy?

It seems funny to think about how many walls this sign has been nailed to. I chuckle to think it has been retired to the garage, but every time I see it, it is attached to the most wonderful memories. This is our roost, our home, and the symbol of a legacy that has kept us…all of us…grounded.

My father turned 80 today. Photos of a recent vacation tell the story of a legacy rich in tradition, and evidence of what fuels us as a family.  Some pieces of this are deliberate, like having a trust in God, a love of family, and commitment for doing the right thing because it’s the right thing to do. I used to hate that one.  Traditions fall into place with this philosophy and life moves along.  Ha…food falls into this category too; and the love of a lobster feed is what comes to mind.

Legacy is something you create everyday. Sometimes it isn’t even conscious, and instead something we naturally pass along. In every instance it is about how you touch the lives of those around you. How lucky for those of us who follow footsteps leaving a legacy of love.  How lucky for those of us who walk through life cherishing,  not what is left WITH us, and instead what is left IN us.

What do you gift an 80-year-old man for his birthday?  It started as a letter, became  a poem, and ended up as a list; a list of memories written by my daughter. It’s contents make sense to only a handful of people. There was  the time he would walk across the floor like a penguin, just to hear her laugh.  There was the time prior to 9/11 when he would be the first face she saw at the arrival gate of the airport.  There was the walks to the ice cream shack down the street, in the summer months.  And there was the his chair always filled with him, and his impeccable wisdom.

How is it that these traditions become a legacy?  It is in the laughter shared only by them, and in the message implying she is the most important part of his day.  It is in fun, and it is in listening, and hearing what she had to say.

What she didn’t realize was that her list was  proof of the legacy he leaves. Today, like everyday she is living in his reflection, following his footsteps, and perpetuating  a legacy of love.   Today, she gave back to him what he spent a lifetime creating for her.

That gift of time?  It is always about that gift of time.

Write the notes, sing the songs, play the tune and eat ice cream.

The Daily Post: Symphony