Legacy...Take Two

From the day of our birth, we begin writing our legacy. We go through our young lives, heedless of scritching of life's pen upon our parchment of experience. Yet so many of us fail to really take advantage of our lives. We live. We fun. We laugh. We love. We hate. We war.

When one looks upon the face of history, we see the masses and we see the famous and the infamous within. The vast majority live unremarkable lives. Why? Why are there the famous and the infamous?

Because the famous and the infamous decide to do something special with their lives. Whether they feel Fate blessed them, or they are simply acting out of simple bloody mindedness, they live their lives whether for good or ill to get the most out or have the greatest effect upon those things they deem important.

The rest of us in the 'masses,' simply try and get by the best we know how and live somewhat unremarkable lives but hopefully with some sense of satisfaction and try and complete the work of our lives. It is in the masses that we tend to 'settle' for what we can get. But it is the famous and the infamous who take our cake and eat it too. Even if they don't deserve it.

For instance, an example of an infamous person could be the good old standby, Adolf Hitler. Now, good old Adolf Had always thought he was destined for greatness. After a near miss in World War One, he was convinced God had great things in store for him.

Now Adolf wanted to be an Artist. Not just an Artist, but a great Artiste! Well, he was a mediocre artist, at best. But he was good enough to perhaps become a good production artist had he wanted to settle for a regular work a day life. But no.

So he chose another of his gifts to develop; that of oratory. And the rest, dear reader is 'history'; unknown millions dead and and continents ravaged.

Another famous individual would be H. G. Wells. Unwilling to knuckle under and become a hum drum Draper for a local mortician, he defied the Victorian age by educating himself in the unheard of span of two years, becoming a teacher and becoming a successful and world class writer, single handedly creating the genre of 'Science Fiction'. Laying the groundwork for the United Nations, and the Rights of Man, having one of the first 'Open Marriages' and championing both free love and women's equality, helping to inspire the suffragette movement, and accurately predicting the Second World War in all its terror, decades before it actually happened.

these are people who fully lived their lives. One in as positive a way as he knew how, the other in quite a bit darker and deranged fashion.

One is thought of today as an inspiration of the future and the best of Mankind, while the other is now synonymous with pure evil and the darkest side of the human spirit. But both had one thing in common. They were not afraid to live their life and live it the fullest of their ability. Right or Wrong. That's something to look at.

So when you go to live your life -- LIVE YOUR LIFE!

Don't settle for what you can get. Aspire for more. Then look for opportunity. Even if it doesn't seem great. It may be better than what you would have settled for.

These days, we live fast, consumerist lives, wanting to keep up with our neighbors and the fickle nature of our society and getting whatever the latest gewgaw might be. But you see, that puts you at the wrong end of the stick. there are those who watch and there are those who go do. Why just watch when you can go do. You might not be great....

.....but then again, you might just be.........Great...