Oct
30
The Legacy
October 30, 2009 | Leave a Comment
The Legacy
I come from a land far north of where I currently reside with memories of that beautiful land and this autumn season of mist and trees and mountains so majestic that there could be no question that the hand of God has created it. As the coastal mountains cascade to the ocean and the grandeur of cathedral rainforests reach to the sky, mist shrouds the inlets and valleys bringing with it drops of rain that chill even the warmest of souls.
I have stood on her mountains and rocky shorelines pausing long enough to take in its raw and rugged beauty, grateful to be able to have walked this land that so few have seen. But now as I ponder it I am more grateful for what it holds captive in my heart. My dear brother, Danan, lays to rest in the waters below by the inlets where the eagles soar and the grizzlies wander her shorelines which they call home.
It was one year ago today that he was swept to the depths of the sometimes unforgiving ocean, never to be seen again. I have been told that the ocean does not give up her own. Well, sometimes she takes what rightfully does not belong to her and on that cold autumn day, she claimed two souls. The other was a man by the name of Jabez, who loved this land far more than most, and his love for the land was but a small drop compared to his love for his fellow man. He was a gentle and loving person whose memory lives in the eyes and heart of his children, his wife, friends and family. These two men worked their entire lives planting those mountain slopes with coniferous trees to replenishing the beauty and bounty that had been harvested by others who had come before them.
So now, with a solemn heart, I remember my brother, a solitary man who spent many of his days alone on those unforgiving slopes with a tap, tap, tapping as he placed his meticulously sharpened shovel, and firmly driving it into the earth. Then bending down with soiled hands meeting the earth and giving it back life, he gently placed a young sapling into her rocky soil. This solitary man did this minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour and day-by-day, year-after-year; working for so long that he has reforested the mountains with over two million trees. This being his LEGACY.
One definition of “A Legacy or Legacies” is what someone or something is remembered for or what they have left behind that is remembered, revered or has impacted the present day.” The air you and I now breathe is brought to us through the constant work of a solitary man, mother earth and the life she renews. So, with the forests of plenty I see clearly my brother’s gift, or Legacy, to us and sigh as I sadly miss him.
Lately I have pondered just what my legacy will be. Is it something we truly understand before our earth life is through, or is it something that will have to be discovered by those we leave behind? One thing I do know is that we don’t live our day-to-day lives with this particular thought in mind.
I’ve had the opportunity to meet many individuals lately, who are doing what it takes to live…simply to live. Not just women, but men as well, occupy the countless recliners of the oncologist’s office as they are infused with drugs designed to kill – kill just enough in hopes that they, we, will live. There is almost a solemn reverence that exists in this room that overlooks a lake, staged just so to create an environment of tranquility and peace. Each time I have visited this room most of the patients are reclined and covered in warm, cozy blankets in a sleepy state caused by the effects of the drugs hanging from their IV stands as they enter their bodies through a tanglement of tubes connected to one main line.
During these hours, I have refused the blankets and remained sitting up in order to fight off the sleep and engage in conversations with those willing to converse. These conversations have become treasures as I connect with strangers who have rapidly become friends. Their stories sear my soul as I feel their pain in the fight for their lives. Some of these newfound friends will not survive their fight and you can see it in their eyes, even though they may not surrender it to their minds, yet. I am grateful for our paths, our lives journeying together, even if it were but for a brief moment. As I write this I think of a quote by Thomas S. Monson which pertains to these moments: “Know what is important and what is not, and fill our days with those things that matter most” . . . “I believe that among the greatest lessons we’re to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. And what is important almost always involves the people around us. Often we assume that they must know how much we love them. But we should never assume, we should let them know.” He continues by saying, “Despite the changes which come into our lives may we fill our days, as much as we can, with those things which matter most. May we cherish those we hold dear and express our love to them in word and in deed…say I love you more, always express your thanks.” And finally, “Never let a problem to be solved become more important then a person to be loved.”
Tears streamed down my face when I read these lines as they took me back to earlier days. When I was eighteen I made a choice to step away from the religion I was raised with and was baptized against my father’s will. The division this created was almost too much to bear yet over time his heart softened, slightly, as he saw the great blessings and change that came into my life. As I contemplated our fractured relationship, I discovered that I couldn’t remember ever telling him that I loved him, and I also could not remember those words uttered towards me – ever. This wasn’t something that was communicated within our world, our family. I now realized that it was up to me to change this and with these words, hopefully, help to close the chasm that divided us. Not being one of courage, my first attempt to talk to him and express my feelings failed as I, for no better words, chickened out. I remember thinking to myself that “I’ll just tell him later, after he comes back from the mainland this weekend.” Unfortunately, he never did come home. That weekend he drowned and my heart weighed heavy for years that I had not uttered these words when I had the chance – “Dad, I love you.” He has heard those words many times since as I talk to him in hopes that the veil between heaven and earth is made thin. And yes, I know he has listened and my heart has been made peaceful and still with this matter. My brother Danan is also told, now on a regular basis, that I love and miss him, for he, too, was never told face to face just how much he meant to me.
This lesson has been instructed, understood and emulated in my life since. My children and husband, as well as my family and friends, are told “I love you,” and they also know that I mean it. These are not idle words in my world. I may not be able to affect the air that you and I breathe by planting millions of trees upon the mountains, but as I breathe words of appreciation, love and respect, I believe I am bending down and planting a seed. This seed is meant to affect not just you, but also your generations if you may learn from my lessons and those things I have been taught.
Never let love be lost for we do not know just when our days are to be done or where we will lay at life’s journeys end. Just as the tree planter leaves behind his planting shovel for others to take up, we too may leave behind a legacy that can be picked up and continued on by future generations. This legacy can stand as an ensign high on a mountaintop and be our mark we leave to this world . . . Our legacy we leave to Mankind.