✨Word of Wonder #3 Legacy✨
You are born weak and die weak what you are in between those two periods of time is up to you
-Oscar M
As I first read this WoW submission the words instantly clicked, this phrase seems so instantly true, and so simple. Yet, so elusive in the complexities hidden there between the two lines. Between those two lines exists a whole dimension, or a whole other plane of thought. I personally know the young man whose submission this was, and if I could side note real quick; I just want to say having known this young man for literally his entire life it brings be great joy and a sense of pride knowing that this idea came from him. I can tell by how carefully the words were placed that some great thought went into them. Just like his opening conjecture seems like bookends of life writ true, so too are his two lines of text; book-ends to a litany of thought provoking strings. That leaves one on his own to weave together the strands and devise one's own conclusion. So Oscar, I will tell you, I believe that is true wisdom that you have displayed.
So, when I first read the phrase my mind started turning. Simply because there is so much potential of human experience waiting to be released from within those two lines. I kept coming back to the Idea of "book-ends." We're born, we Die. Those are the two most absolute certainties in life, taxes come in at a very close third .😂 Those two line though, they are also book-ends, book-ends that I hope to install in my internal being by the end of this publication. Writing so much lately has reminded me why I love it so much. I get to dissect my thoughts and organize them into something concrete that I can then add to my metaphorical book shelf between the bookends of my life and death. Thanks to all the Perfectly Average fans, I have found myself growing exponentially throughout the short conception of our average community, I'm going to need a bigger book shelf!
Now, all of those thoughts and ideas came easy like sipping down a cold glass of lemonade on a hot summer day, the challenge was choosing a word to fit the quote. How does one pick a single word to capture such a phrase wrought with wisdom. So instead I thought of it as if it were a question rather than a statement, as if it were a game of reverse Jeopardy. At first I thought of choices, but of course we already know that we are simply the summation of our choices. I went back and read that publication, upon reaching the end I came to realize that this phrase was far deeper than that. So then I Asked myself the question what would be the last book I would like to leave on the shelf just before placing the final book-end that would hold it all together? I landed on legacy. A complete volume of all triumphs and failure, of all the happy moments and the sad; essentially a single compilation of wisdom through lessons learned to pass on to my children and thiers' after them. Ultimately the summation of our choices leads to the legacy we leave behind. legacy is at the end of our human equation. Upon chatting with Oscar, he said, and I agree, "Sounds perfect."
So let us begin,
Grand Secret
Picture this. You have a cinematic drone view of a jungle, the sun is just about set, the sky is a hazy creamsicle color, starting from the horizon at a creamy orange-white fading to tangerine orange, just before submerging into a blood red spectral, finally topping out in a deep, silky burgundy. You're standing at the top of an ancient stone tower looking as far to the horizon as the eye allows. As you look out you see the gray and black silhouettes of tree tops that form a jungles' canopy. As you move your gaze closer and closer you notice the silhouettes begin to reflect their true color. Allow yourself to scroll through all the different types of greens and brown that seem to emanate from the numerous types of trees, leaves, bushes and vines. It feels serene, like the entire jungle is about to slumber. As you continue to pan your vision closer to the tower; you notice how there is a single greenish-yellow vine beginning it's ascent of the tower. Like a slow and cunning enemy attempting to reclaim a territory that it once solely owned. As you follow the vine upward you see a single dais of the tower, completely clear of any debris. a single last ray of bright yellow sunlight lasers from the horizon piercing through the canopy and funnelling a light over the dais that seems as if it were designed for that exact moment. This is when you notice a single man; dawning a deep blue Kimono with golden embroidery placed elegantly along the sleeves and waistline. Resting upon his head is a thin cone shaped woven cap known as a Kasa. Next to him lies a simple black sheath with a single blue emerald. Inside that sheath is his legacy . A legacy passed down to him from his father and his father before him. His Katana. Even though this man is facing away from you, you feel as though he's keeping a grand revelation all to himself. Just the same, he is wondering what comes next for him and what can he leave behind for the world.
Don't ask me why, but this is my vision when I first think of the word "legacy."
I am forever curious about what all the perfectly average fans think or feel. So, please comment below or on the facebook community what you see when you first hear the word "legacy."
Let us continue:
1: a gift by will especially of money or other personal property
2: something transmitted by or received from an ancestor or predecessor or from the past
While equity is on type of legacy that we all wish to give, and receive; as assets give us financial and social standing that feels sturdy. I would rather go down the proverbial rabbit hole of definition 2. As it captures the way I identify with Oscar's phrase.
While yes, I do hope to be able to leave my children with such assets, I hope to leave them with things far more important than that. Such as, self esteem, confidence, internal value, humbleness, ethics; strong moral grounds, and most of all the importance of reasonability. Also, while it's crucial to be your individual self, helping those around you for only the sake of helping, adds to and fortifies the legacy structure of the whole of humankind.
Legacy and Honor
I wonder if legacy and honor are tied together or maybe one is a byproduct of the other. Maybe even they exist on parallel tracks, but symbiosis isn't necessary.
Let us explore that idea a bit more. I think most people have some sense of honor, honor itself is likely on a spectrum; much like everything else in this existence. Even light has its own spectrum, which we call the rainbow, but I digress.
Think about it though, when we first begin to make a large choice we think how it may be perceived by those around us. When I make a big decision, such as starting this website. I first thought about my wife, and how this might be perceived by her. This is a woman who chose to share a name and a life with me. To me that is one of the most sacred past times of humankind, It is my duty to do honor by that name, The name we share. I then thought about my mother and father. Just like my wife, I felt an obligation to do good by their name. Not just in this particular adventure but throughout the endeavor of my life as a whole. Afterall, I am some parts equal to the summation of their choices, In the way it goes, I am probably responsible for 1/3 of my parents legacy, as it were. My moral compass was slowly soaked into me by watching and listening to my parents. I learned things that I should do, and things I should never do. Both sets, from both parents, in different situations. I still learn a great deal from them both. Is this part of their legacy? I wonder.
Before I go too far astray, I want to touch on this honor thing a bit more. Like a sailor on the see, I too need a compass to navigate the world, and pay careful attention to the wake (legacy) I leave behind. The compass is named honor, I have no doubt that you're honor is equal to your moral steadfast. So, I wish you all fair winds.
Honor is an important part of the human experience, and it should be defended fiercely. I once almost got in a fist fight with a guy from a different paving crew from a sister company because he was talking poorly about my crew. It was my first year as a foreman but I already felt it was my duty to defend my men. When my men saw what was happening they seperated us and talked me down. I'd like to think this sent a message to them though, my hope is in that moment they saw a leader who'd always have their back, because any leader is only as good as the crew they have in front of them. This past week that crew broke an all time company record for asphalt paving, Together we paved a total of 100 trucks adding up to 4061.93 tons of asphalt. The icing on the cake is that the mix, and the compaction was in full bonus for the day. This means not only did we break a record, but with the help of quality control and plant personal, we also achieved perfect quality for those tons. This fact earned the company an extra amount of peanuts per ton. In the interest of business ethics and privacy for my company; you'll have to take me at my word when I say: 'It's a lot of 'extra peanuts.'
Sorry for that sidebar, I had to stroke my ego a bit. There was a point however, I felt honored to be part of it, I'd like to think that record breaking day didn't actually start at 6:00 a.m. on 07/13/2023. No, I'd like to think it started many years ago with all of us laying the groundwork of competence, pride, and honor that led to a day where together we achieved our legacy.
Lasty I'll add, these men are definitely "Country Strong."
Okay y'all, we have reached that point where I have stopped paying attention to the word count and it's getting out of hand. So let us land this plane.
When we are first born, we are completely helpless, our parents have to do absolutely everything for us. We can't even make it 12 hours on our own. Human offspring are actually odd in this way. We stay in the nest for at least 18 years, a lot of times even longer. Even after we leave the nest we still depend on them. We are weak. I became an actual adult when I was 26. Which is weird because I had a 6 year old child, and a career. The reason why I say this is because I had asked for a sizeable loan from my mom and my second dad, they obliged. I felt absolutely tiny, I made a promise to myself then; that I would never ask them for money again. To this day I haven't. Furthermore, I started doing things for myself. Yes, I still ask for advice, and always will, but I do it. I help wherever/whenever I can; I got this moral from my parents. My moral is equal to their legacy.
Now it is my turn to choose the right things to do and the right things to say. For the wake of my choices is equal to the legacy of my parents. In turn, the wake to my morals finally churns into the 'legacy bread crumbs' I leave for my children, and theirs after them. When I become weak and frail once again, just before I return to the dust from winst I came. I will place That final, and all encompassing volume upon my shelf of lifetime. That will be my Legacy.
Only Then,
Book-end.
Thanks again to perfectly average Oscar M. for this week's Word of the Week! I hope I did it justice, and brought honor to you. You are more like a younger brother to me than anything else so I really hope this encompasses your wise words.
I'd like now to address the averagebenjamin community. I'm lucky enough to be able to peer behind the veil of this community I get to watch it grow, but it's thanks to all of you that I get to continue this fun, exciting, and introspective volume of my existence. I'm so grateful for the interactions and word submissions. It gives me something to think and write about between the other publications. I'm sorry that part two of Test the Waters is taking so long. I just want it to be really good for you all. I owe all the Perfectly Average my best. I love you all, and as always thanks for reading
AverageBenjamin,
Signing off.