Friday, January 23, 2009

What Will Matter

Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end.

There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days. All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten, will passes to someone else. Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance.

It will not matter what you owned.
Your grudges,resentments, frustrations and jealousies will finally disappear.
The wins and losses that once seemed to important will fade away.

It won't matter where you came from or what side of the tracks you lived on at the end.
It won't matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant.
Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant.

So what will matter? How will the value of your days be measured?

What will matter is not what you want but what you gave.
What will matter is not your successes but your significance.
What will matter is not what you learned but what you taught.
What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion, courage or sacrifice that enriched, empowered or encouraged others to emulate your example.

What will matter is not your competence but your character.
What will matter is not how many people you knew, but how many will feel a lasting loss when you're gone.

What will matter is not your memories but the memories of those who loved you.
What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom and for what.
Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident.
Its not a matter of circumstance but of choice.
CHOOSE TO LIVE A LIFE THAT MATTERS.

--Michael Josephson

















2 comments:

Thomas Bussiere said...

So often we get caught up in the day-to-day activities that we lose sight of the big picture. This is what I love about a good trail run – It grounds me and allows me to refocus on the things that are important in life.
Thanks Lisa for posting this reminder. You are an inspiration for us.
TAB

AA said...

Thanks Lisa, that was great to read, and a needed reminder :)
Your weekend with Sister MB looks like it was so much fun! I'm glad you had a great time :)