Daily Cascade

Lady or Legend? Bah, Humbug!

Prompt: "Don't be a Lady. Be a legend."
Stevie Nicks
Let this quote inspire your writing today.

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Really? Oh well, in my case, Stevie Nicks should be happy. I'm not a lady but then, neither am I a legend, nor would I want to be. Still, I can think of one person who was both a lady and a legend: Maggie Smith. Who says being a lady is contraindicative of becoming a legend, after all!

But enough about Maggie Smith. Let's focus on why Stevie Nicks said that. My underlying thought is that she herself is pining to become a legend. Who knows, with her songwriting, she may just become one. Yet, that's iffy, too. Being famous for a while doesn't make someone a legend. It is an all-around thing, the way I see it. I mean, many a songwriter, although their songs are hits, are forgotten about in a short time.

Did Stevie Nicks mean to break away from traditional expectations? Possibly, but that's nothing new. Most of us go along with what the present-day norms show and ask us how to be, anyway. On the other hand, being a legend signifies something that transcends time and leaves a strong legacy.

Now, if she is hinting at authenticity and courage, yes, those assets would be needed for one to become a legend. Yet, how many women (or men), in reality, know who they are 100%? Wouldn't some self-knowledge be a part of one's authenticity?

Then, maybe the quote "Don't be a lady, be a legend" is an invitation to redefining what success is; a definition that may be arrived at by pushing boundaries and doing what pleases a person himself or herself the most, while not causing the demise, unhappiness, or failure of others. Similar to that, another point or question is: Doesn't the definition of success change from person to person, as well?

Yup, there you go! Those who think they know, they don't! At least not well or fully. That's why no one has the right to tell anyone how to be.