I have a tendency to read the obituaries in the news. Not just to find out who passed away, but what is their life story, interests, and contributions. Supposedly ordinary people who fought wars, raised families, contributed time and money to charity, and other works that were unheralded. The everyday struggle of earning living, donating your time to charities, and raising a family are rarely noted or glamorized. That there was a life beyond the short printed death notice in a newspaper.
I often wondered about those with short biographies if they did more than reported. What were their ambitions, and what else would they liked to have done (who doesn't think that?). What were their hopes, dreams, and unfulfilled ambitions? Some obituaries are very personal, giving such information as favorite movies, fans of movies, special friends, pets, and funny anecdotes. Others are very sparse with detail, and some have very little or no family listed at all, a making me sad for them, where an obituary page is seemingly their only legacy.
It makes me wonder what my mark in life will be and what a legacy I leave behind. That's probably what is behind mid life crises: the feeling to accomplish what one wants to do is increasingly limited as time passes. In the end, I don't want to remembered as the number one Steelers fan or other such distinction, but rather the title of husband, father, and Christian worker. The number of people I made laugh, made their life better, and helped is a far better legacy to be remembered by that titles or money.
I often wondered about those with short biographies if they did more than reported. What were their ambitions, and what else would they liked to have done (who doesn't think that?). What were their hopes, dreams, and unfulfilled ambitions? Some obituaries are very personal, giving such information as favorite movies, fans of movies, special friends, pets, and funny anecdotes. Others are very sparse with detail, and some have very little or no family listed at all, a making me sad for them, where an obituary page is seemingly their only legacy.
It makes me wonder what my mark in life will be and what a legacy I leave behind. That's probably what is behind mid life crises: the feeling to accomplish what one wants to do is increasingly limited as time passes. In the end, I don't want to remembered as the number one Steelers fan or other such distinction, but rather the title of husband, father, and Christian worker. The number of people I made laugh, made their life better, and helped is a far better legacy to be remembered by that titles or money.
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