  Spiritual
This week: What Will Your Legacy Be? Edited by: Sophy  
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Hi, I'm Sophy ~ your editor for this edition of the Spiritual Newsletter.
The Rev. Scotty McLennan, author of the book Finding Your Religion, compares humanity's innate need for spiritual searching to climbing a mountain. In his view, we are all endeavoring to climb the same figurative mountain in our search for the divine, we just may take different ways to get there. In other words, there is one "God," but many paths. I honor whatever path or paths you have chosen to climb that mountain in your quest for the Sacred.  |
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What Will Your Legacy Be?
What will we leave behind when we come to the end of what Mary Oliver calls our “one wild and precious life?” What mark do we want to leave on the world – and what mark will we leave? It’s a basic human need, isn’t it – the desire to leave something behind, to leave an imprint on the world? Whether we have just a few or many more years of living left, we all want something of ourselves to live beyond the grave, to say “I was here!” and my life made a difference - hopefully for the better
What would have been my father’s 89th birthday occurred a couple of weeks ago, reminding me of the legacy he left behind from his 75 years of living. By legacy, in this sense, I mean what kind of mark he left on the world, which remains even 14 years after his death. I thought of how generous he was, always stopping to help someone in trouble, and only asking that they do the same for someone else in need as repayment of the debt. I remembered how good he was with his hands, and how important to him that the home my mother lived in for 10 years after his death would be in such good shape before he died, so that she would have a safe place to live without him. And I recalled his sense of humor – we still laugh at the corny jokes he told, pranks he pulled, and expressions he used.
As I pondered the life and legacy of my father, it led to my thinking about what sort of legacy I want to leave behind after I’m gone. And what am I doing to make sure I leave the legacy I want to leave after I’m gone? I don’t have children, so I’m not going to be leaving that kind of legacy behind – but I do have other ways I can leave my mark on the world, hopefully in a positive way - leaving my corner of the world better because I was here. So what are those, and how can I ensure that I leave them? Obviously the legacy we intend isn’t always the one we end up leaving – I suspect those related to Adolph Hitler aren't proud of his legacy. And other people who leave more positive legacies may not have realized when they were alive what a gift they would leave behind after their death. I doubt my father was aware of the positive impact his life would have on those who knew him – his many insecurities likely kept him from knowing, even near the end of his life. But there are others who are intentional about the positive legacy they wish to leave behind.
Whether it’s leaving money to an institution for the good of others, or focusing one’s life on a particular issue or cause for justice, some people inherently want to make the world better place for their having been in it, and thus are proactive to make that happen. One of the ways they do that, as I’ve already said, is to work actively to leave a particular legacy behind after they are gone. People who care about poverty and justice for the homeless, for instance, make that a substantial part of their life’s work or volunteerism. Others who care about nurturing and teaching children, the future of the world, leave a legacy by parenting or teaching or coaching - for good or for ill. Or we may leave our writing behind as a legacy, as many folks here on WDC do.
Maya Angelou writes: “When great souls die, after a period, peace blooms. Our senses, restored, never to be the same, whisper to us. They existed. They existed. They exist in us.” How do you want to be remembered? What legacy do you wish to leave behind? What will you do to ensure that the legacy you want to leave is the one that is actually left when you are gone?
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Below you'll find some spiritual offerings from other WDC members. Please let the folks know if you read their piece by leaving a thoughtful comment or review. I realize I post mostly poems, but that is because it is tough to find other types of spiritual writing on the site (most are poems). If you have something you would like me to highlight, please do share it with me, thanks!
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A look back and going forward to pinpoint what Sabbath means for me now.
#2090518 by drifter  |
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Here is a response to my last newsletter "Spiritual Newsletter (June 29, 2016)" about Being Spiritual AND Religious:
From Vaughan Jones - ONE Scribe 
Thank you for this, the topic pricks my interest immediately as I wrote a book entitled "Spirituality-Gathered Inspirational Thoughts" whick was based on research that I did in this field. Here's the link to the WDC synopsis: | | | Invalid Item
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Blessings - ONE Scribe
So glad you liked it - and thanks for sharing your item.
      
From Steve adding writing to ntbk.
Thanks for sharing and for the writers you highlighted. I was treated to much fodder to review.
Write on!
Cooperator out!
You are welcome! 
From A*Monaing*Faith
Great topic, I went through the Spiritual not 'religious' phase simply b/c religion gets such a bad rap these days. Now I'm back to S AND R. To put it in perspective, my favorite church in Cincinnati, Crossroads, did a whole series on "Death of Religion" where basically they condemned the 'us VS them' mindset. Wish I could have been there in person to experience that. https://www.crossroads.net/series/96/Death-of-Religion
So glad you liked it - thank you for writing in to let me know.
From: Shannon 
"Religion is often a container in which spiritual practices are preserved and passed on. Some people find the container as helpful as what it contains and choose to belong to a specific religion. Others simply take what they need from the containers and fashion their own way." LOVE this! Great newsletter, Sophy .
Thanks Shannon - I love that quote too!
From: InfoWarrior
I'm glad you liked my poem enough to include into this newsletter, Sophy! Thanks for putting it in. I liked the letter you wrote, because that is so true. One must always be careful when it comes to man-made community religions. Also, faith without fact is fiction. I learned that for myself earlier this year. I am thankful to God, and I gladly do his work through what he provides me with. I'm glad I have my own bookstore, and found books of great knowledge in them. I've been given a purpose, and I intend to stick with it to the end.
You are welcome for posting your poem - and so glad you found your purpose and are living it.
Please keep your comments and suggestions coming! Until next time! Sophy |
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Spiritual: July 27, 2016 Issue [#7773]
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