Saturday, October 31, 2015

Legacy

Happy Friday Friends!

I hope & trust this post finds you all having a great day on this beautiful Saturday morning! It is another stormy day on the Texas Gulf Coast but hey, it's game day! Guess I will just have to snuggle in with the family and watch football games all day...the sacrifices never end! :)

Earlier this week I was reading No More Excuses: Be the Man God Made You To Be by Tony Evans and I really thought this Happy Friday was going to be about legacy, or more specifically, the legacies we all leave. Then it wasn't, then it was, then it wasn't or...

My Beautiful Bride, my youngest Tender Warrior, Landry, and I went out to eat Wednesday night. We went to the sandwich shop where our oldest Tender Warrior, Payton, works and we were sitting outside enjoying a beautiful evening. As we were sitting there talking, a police officer pulled into the parking lot and started to park. Immediately I told Kath & Landry we should buy him dinner. It has really bothered my heart & spirit to see how law enforcement officers - all of them - have been vilified & become despised in our society. We live no more than 30 miles from where Deputy Sherriff Darren Goforth - 47-years old, married with 5 & 12-year old children - was murdered while he filled his patrol car with gasoline. Yes, the actions of a few, a very few, officers has been reprehensible. They have done bad, horrible things and those officers should be dealt with accordingly - we should all be held accountable for our actions. The vast majority however are selfless men & women who place their lives in harms way every single day in service to society. They see and do things every day that I could not, and would not, want to do. And I am so grateful that they are there, that should my wife, sons or I ever need them, they will come running to help us any way they can. This is my heart as I propose buying this officer dinner.

We develop a plan. Landry will walk up to him and ask, "will you please allow us to buy you dinner?" As we finalize our plan, the officer is finished parking and another patrol car pulls into the parking lot. We quickly determine we will buy him dinner as well. We walk up to the officer who very kindly greets us. Landry is nervous but asks the question. The officer smiles warmly and tells him "yes." The second officer walks up and Landry starts to stumble over his words. I tell him it is o.k., don't be nervous and to just ask the question. He looks the officer straight in the eyes and asks him if he will please allow us to buy him dinner. This officer says "yes" as well. The officers thank Kathy & I and we send Landry into the shop with our credit card and the two police officers. He is proud...you can see it in his walk, in the smile on his face. As Kathy & I sit outside we can see Landry & the officers through the window talking, smiling. I then look up and another police car is pulling into the parking lot! I joke with Kathy that there is a code and the officers inside are putting out a call on the radio that there is free dinner at this sandwich shop! We are laughing hysterically. We don't get up to say anything to this officer...we just let him walk in knowing that Landry has it from here. Landry stays with the 3 officers, buys them all dinner and then comes back outside to sit with Kath & I, to finish his dinner. Before we leave the officers thank us repeatedly. We thank them for all they do.

As we lay in bed that night talking Landry talks about how good that felt, to do something for these police officers. He would tell his Mom the next day on the way to school that his heart felt warm buying the officers dinner. As my Beautiful Bride and I talked about all of this later that night, I said, "we are a part of his story." You see, there are tons of times I have said to my boys, "I remember the time when I was a boy..." This will now be a part of Landry's story. He will never forget the night he bought 3 police officers dinner. He will one day share that story with his children.

I had another situation this week that didn't bring warm fuzzies but brought deep peace & contentment to my Spirit. I was asked to attest to & sign something that was not true. I could not do it, would not do it. The person asking me to do it became more forceful. I stayed calm but was more firm in my response that this is something I simply could not do. As it all unfolded, as a bunch of people were watching me, I was acutely aware that something greater than me, inside of me, would not allow me to do something that I simply knew, to the depths of my soul, was not right. I didn't do it and I walked away from the entire situation with a deep peace & contentment in my Spirit that affirmed my words & actions had been correct.

Here is the thing, the point I want us to catch; I did not go out to dinner one night or to work one day thinking this was going to be some big defining moment type day/event. You see, our legacies are in the little things we do each and every day. We - o.k., maybe just me! - sometimes look to great big events/times and think that "when this happens" or "when that happens" all this other stuff will happen. It is however in the mundane, day to day, as life is flying at us fast & furious, that these incredibly profound times and moments hit us. This is why I believe it is so critical for us to live fully present in each and every moment. You never know when something profound will happen, when a legacy will be launched that will reverberate for generations. So on this Saturday, as you are going to a game, doing yard work or just hanging out with family & friends, be aware, be present for the things you say & do ARE the legacy you are leaving.

I want to wrap this all up with an incredible poem titled "What Will Be Your Legacy?" by Haki Aitoro.

What Will Be Your Legacy?
 
"Do I wander through life aimlessly?
Wild, reckless, inconsiderate
Unmindful of the consequences of my behaviour
Do I run wild in a savage stupor?
Pugnacious, belligerent, impolite
Unconscious of the altitude of my ignorance
Unaware of the latitude of my negligence
Carefree
Leaving a trail of scarcity
Along a path of regret
Leaving years of psychological scars
In the repressed minds of distressed adults
In the misguided souls of troubled youths

Will I leave disillusioned children?
Angry and confused
Shameful and misguided
Lost and astray
Crying for direction
Weeping for guidance
Longing for unconditional love
Grieving for sound judgement
For I taught them not a lifetime of wisdom
For wisdom was not important
For I offered them not sound advice
For I never took life seriously
For I taught them not discipline
For I was reckless and immature
For I showed them naught but a drop of love
For my selfishness knew no bounds

Will I leave disappointed partners?
Bitter and frustrated
Troubled and wounded
Disturbed and injured
Wishing for sincerity
Longing for honesty
Praying for fidelity
Yearning for faithfulness
For I killed their trust
Due to my shamelessness
For I eradicated their hope
Due to my disrespect
For I damaged their faith
Due to my infidelity
For I destroyed their confidence
Due to my deception
For I killed their self development
Due to my ignorance

Will I leave appalled individuals?
Disgusted and revolted
Unconcerned and apathetic
Sarcastic and scornful
Mocking my ignorance
Sickened at my negligence
Horrified at my irresponsibility
Deriding my financial intelligence
Appalled at my selfishness
For I disrespected many good folk
In the name of humour
Mere mockery in fact
For I abused much kindness
In the name of friendship
Sheer exploitation to be precise
For I never listened to others
In the name of intelligence
Simply arrogance no doubt
For I spoke ill of people
In the name wisdom
Purely foolishness indeed
For I was impatient with the most enduring
In the name of progress
Clearly mental commotion
For I was unforgiving with the most compassionate
In the name of truth
Conceitedness in fact

Fatherhood was not my forte
For I struggled to maintain my youth
Relationship was not my aspiration
For I disliked commitment
Friendship was not my goal
For I detested disagreement
Education was not my focus
For I found it a bore
Investment was not my desire
For I cherished the consumer lifestyle
Responsibility was not my wish
For I cherished excitement and folic
Discipline was not my want
For I enjoyed ease
Devotion was not my focal point
For I choose carelessness

So what will you leave?
A story of inspiration through your achievements
A fable of love through your affection
An account of devotion through your loyalty
A description of success through your diligence
A portrayal of courage through your chosen path
A depiction of wisdom through your experiences
An illustration of happiness through your humour
An image of resilience through your adversity
A report of wealth through your acumen
A tale of nobility through your actions
A myth of grandeur through your life of contribution

Let us all be remembered
For the lives we touched
For the people helped
For the wisdom we shared
For the stories we told
For the laughter we initiated
For the love we gave
For the affection we showed
For the good role models we were
For the communities we inspired
For the youth we guided
For the hungry we feed
For the needy we assisted
For the success we created
For the risk we took
For the world we changed
Let us write down our stories
Let us tell our experiences
Let us record our tales
Let us share our struggles
For our children
For our grandchildren
For generations to see
For generations to hear
As a source of hope
As a source of wisdom
As a source of guidance
As an example of our legacy
So what will you leave?"
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