I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.
Henry David Thoreau
As we ponder the big questions this week, we come face-to-face with the solid fact of our mortality.
It can be uncomfortable to think about things like our legacy, but when we’re diving into “What do I want to DO with my life?”, it makes sense to begin at the end.
Far from being a depressing endeavor, this can be energizing and revitalizing (in the truest sense of that word — bringing back to life!) In fact, I just had a conversation last week with a new acquaintance who shared with me the story of his near-deadly illness he suffered two years ago, and how coming so close to death helped him get incredibly clear about what he did, and did not, want out of life.
We shouldn’t have to experience near-death to get clarity! With mindfulness, with our recognition of the impermanence of the present moment, and the transitory nature of our thoughts and our emotions, we can embrace the finite nature of our own existence as well.
This final exercise for our “data-gathering” week is to think about your legacy. What do you hope, when your time comes to an end, that you have done? What do you hope people say about you when you are gone? How do you want your life to be described and remembered?
Mark Manson frames the questions this way:
How will the world be different and better when you’re gone? What mark will you have made? What influence will you have caused? They say that a butterfly flapping its wings in Africa can cause a hurricane in Florida; well, what hurricanes will you leave in your wake?
Take another deep breath…. this is deep powerful stuff…. and download the handout here to help you write about your legacy.
We’ve gathered a lot of data this week. Next week, we’ll start drilling down into the goals and intentions we’ll set for the year ahead. For your reference, below is the schedule for the weeks (Weeks 1 & 2: Intentions and Resolutions, Week 3: Transformation, 4: Passionate Engagement) that I outlined in the video in the first lesson:
Feel free to share your insights from this week in the comments below!