Sandy Supposes....

My Legacy, My Journals

PROMPT: Motivational Monday! Musician David Gilmour, born on this day in 1947, once said, "It's a very tempting thing to try and relive your glory days when you get a little older and you worry that people have forgotten all about you." In what way or ways does your writing preserve any kind of legacy?

         I'm trying to think, and write, but this ear worm is wriggling and writhing in my head. Yep, I'm humming Bruce Springsteen's 'Glory Days.' This line seems a bit harsh and cynical. "Time slips away and leaves you with nothing mister but boring stories of glory days." I've always believed I'm living to create memories, memories to cherish. Why should I bother to attempt anything, or go anywhere if it's worthless? Obviously, I do not think this way. I'm an optimist. I'm not content to just sit passively in an armchair, and watch the world pass me by. I have much more to see, and do.

         Perhaps this is an entertainer's lot in life. I believe many crave the spotlight, and all the attention that goes with it. They have to be noticed, and the centre of attention. Losing it because they are considered too old, and irrelevant must be devastating. Their whole world evolved around their image, their appearance, their status. They live for the applause.

         My life has never been lived under that harsh scrutiny, that microscope. I'm not worried that people, the general population, will forget about me. The people that matter will remember me, and I will remember them.

         Does my writing preserve a legacy? Will my family inherit my writings? Hmm, I strive to write about real life; the characters I've met and interacted with, those who have made me laugh and cry, those who have inspired me. I attempt to put memories to paper, or translate events to words. I create snapshots. Who knows? Maybe my musings will evoke laughter and smiles, or spur recollections, or offer comfort and solace, or incite curiosity, or impart wisdom. I have requested that my children at least peruse my journals before, or if they dispose of them. That will be my legacy, a library of my memories, my thoughts, my observations, my creative attempts, and family history. If they dutifully follow my wishes, I will have guaranteed they have enough reading material for years. How's that for a legacy, a mother who encouraged reading...