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Making
things happen - with integrity. A Weekly CyberMemo designed to keep you on task. Monday, January 24, 2000 Volume II Number 4
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FOCUS - Legacy
“I never heard a man on his deathbed say that he wished he’d spent more time at the office. Or called on a few more customers. Or cut just one more deal. Or complain over missed financial opportunities – or express regrets over the failure to invest in one of those dot.com stocks.”
Pastor Bill gets us thinking about what we hope our life will ultimately mean. We are just a bunch of guys meeting early morning over coffee to talk about important stuff. Personal stuff. And see if the Bible has something to say. Bill suggests that we think a little bit about the whole concept of legacy.
OK. So it’s kind of a morbid topic, he says. Agreed. But let’s face it. We’re talking about inevitabilities here. No getting around it. No side steppin’ this one. You may have dodged a few bullets by now… but you and I both know, “death and taxes…”
It gets us thinking about the people who have marked our lives - both positively and negatively. Two of the guys in the group sipping coffee are good dads. They have solid families. Good kids. Strong marriages. But both guys grew up without a their own dad at home. They are breaking new ground. They don’t have the advantage of a good model. The pain’s still real. In fact, it’s an aching void.
One of those guys believed the man married to his mom was his dad. But in the third grade he learned otherwise. And by age eleven, this step-dad was gone. Seems like he got tired of fatherhood. And fidelity.
That’s one kind of legacy.
Another of our guys is one year short of seventy. He told us about a new awareness coming on. He remembers his great-grandfather. And when he died. Then his grandfather. He remembers his dad. He’s gone now, too. “I guess I’m next in line,” Frank said.
“C’mon Frank,” us younger guys protested. “You’re gunna live to be a hundred,” we said, thinkin’ that would make him feel better.
Then Frank said, “I’ve got kids and grandkids. I’m realizin’ that I gotta make it count.”
We all nodded. Us, too.
* * * * * * * *
The word is a legal term. “Legacy” is the property one leaves to named beneficiaries. It’s the inheritance. Heirs become owners. It can be real estate, stocks, bonds, bank accounts, personal possessions, collectables, contracts, business interests, or cash.
The guys who accumulate huge estates often have an assembly of heirs eager for the “settlement” and final distribution. Some of those really rich guys develop serious contempt for those drooling beneficiaries.
Look at J. Paul Getty. The federal government and his long list of wives and children were all stunned when the multimillionaire industrialist left nearly all of his estate to his tax-exempt art museum. It’s said that the embalmer could not erase the contented smile from Getty’s corpse.
Ever the storyteller, John Grisham creates a character for his new novel: Troy Phelan, a seventy eight year old eccentric worth eleven billion. He is gravely ill. The media announces he is near death. The wealthy business tycoon cunningly calls together his heirs for a preliminary reading of his intentions for the distribution of his monumental estate, complete with a general estimate of its value. The gathering is a motley collection of well dressed ne’er do wells. Each accompanied by personal counsel. It’s looking good, they think.
The meeting adjourned, and just before he shocks the world by leaping to his death off the balcony of a high-rise hotel room, Phelan secretly signs a new will, invalidating the old, leaving his considerable fortune to a penniless missionary serving God in some remote Amazonian jungle. His meticulous planning pays off. The heirs do not learn about the cancellation of the publicized will for months - plenty of time to create impossible debts. These greedy, self-absorbed folks will have to find some other way to pay for the elegant houses, overpriced cars, luxury cruises and exorbitant legal fees - all secured by a promise splattered all over a city sidewalk. There will be no unearned bonanza.
Readers cheer. It’s Grisham’s legal novel, The Testament.
“I would as soon leave my son a curse as the almighty dollar,” declares philanthropist Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919).
When Pastor Bill suggests we talk about “Legacy,” he has something else in mind. Not the almighty dollar.
He is not thinking of the tangibles of legacy. He is thinking about the intangibles.
* * * * * * *
The intangible of legacy is the imprint. The lasting impression that’s left behind. Sometimes it’s used in connection with some great episode in history.
We talk about the legacy of the Holocaust. Or the legacy of Apartheid. One author talks about the legacy of Britain’s Welfare State. It was a system set in place at the end of World War II to relieve the suffering of a war torn nation. But today, it has created enormous challenges for Britain as a competitive player in the hot global economy. These great moments in history leave their imprint on generations yet to come.
We refer to the legacy of
those individuals who make a lasting impression on culture and society.
We talk about the legacy of Judy Garland. Or Earnest Hemingway. Or
Albert Einstein (Person of the Century). Just
the mention of the name triggers a whole volume of ideas and concepts and
pictures. 
Judy Garland – a journey down the Yellow Brick Road.
Hemingway – for Whom the Bell Tolls.
Einstein – the theory of relativity.
Each a lasting legacy.
But none of us guys in that early morning meeting are holding on to any adolescent notion of greatness. We’re not looking to make the Forbes list of the richest people in America. Nor do we expect to become household names.
Once we dreamed dreams of stardom. Like those early days when we would shoot hoops solo in the back yard. With mere seconds left on the clock, we were down a point, and the championship hung in the balance as we took the surprise jump shot from outside – the make-believe crowd stands silent, waiting… waiting. The ball suspended, hanging in the air – flies, arching towards the target. And in that one imaginary moment, when the shot went in – all net – the cameras flash, the crowd explodes, the teammates race to our side and lift us high as reigning champion. We wave to the fans. Nod in appreciation. Pick out mom and dad. Point and grin. The adoring girlfriend. Point and grin. The favorite teacher. Point and grin. They are all there. Oh the glory of it all.
But if the shot fell short, or bounced off the rim out of bounds, there’d be a collective groan from that make-believe crowd. Hands raised in disbelief. Heads shaking. The championship vanished into thin air. But the sadness and remorse would only last a moment. We’d just turn the fabricated clock back a few seconds and go at it again. Give it another try. No one really saw the miss.
No, those fantasy days are long gone. Us guys are a little more sophisticated now that we are grown up. We’re not thinking superstar status anymore.
We’re just thinking we want to leave a legacy of goodness. We want the mention of our name to trigger good thoughts.
We want our kids to do well. We want them to achieve. To survive the difficulties and the disappointments. To make a positive contribution. To live wholesome, winsome, happy lives. To find love. To build a home. To honor God.
We want our marriages to be vibrant and alive. We want our homes to be a place of refuge and rest and security and fun. We want friendships that are real. And lasting. We want to join hands with likeminded people and together make our communities pleasant and good. We want to play a part in helping others achieve their goals. We want our beliefs and our values to be transferable… to pass the torch that’s been given to us on to trustworthy young people. We know we play a role. Our behavior and our choices and our character all matter. We have work to do.
This is legacy.
* * * * * *
You want to leave a legacy. A positive legacy. So do I.
Today you’ll make decisions. You’ll buy and sell. You’ll pick up the phone. You’ll call the meeting. You’ll set appointments. You’ll live out that business plan.
Just as you make deposits into your retirement plan, make deposits into that legacy plan as well. Invest yourself in the things that will outlast you.
Let’s join Frank – and make it count.
© Copyright Kenneth E. Kemp 2000
Special Thanks to my good friend David Belcher, owner of Rhino Media Group and creator of WisdomGram
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