On Your Tombstone?

The other day I visited the Georgia Military Cemetery located on Hwy 20. It was interesting reading the epitaphs. One said, "Going to my Last Party." Another one said, "Sailing Away." I connected to the one that said, "Steal Drums and Sandy Beaches are Calling." As I wondered through the tombstones I came across a man with my name. It is kind of odd reading your own epitaph. Of course I wasn't born in 1934 and have never fought in a World War.

I was reminded of a story about Alfred Nobel. One morning Mr. Nobel picked up a newspaper and read an account of his own death. It seems that a relative had died and the reporter mistakenly assumed it was the famous inventor. As he read the article, he was disturbed about the way he was being remembered. He resolved to use the remainder of his days to change the way people would remember him. Not many remember him as the inventor of dynamite, but we all know about the Nobel Peace Prize.

"How do you want people to remember you?" It may be morbid to think about but every now and then we need to ask ourselves how will I be remembered. It seems that there are only three possibilities.

First, we can have a negative effect on the world. Like scavengers, we live off the labors of others. We exploit others. Secondly, we can have a neutral effect on the world. In the New Testament there is a story of some people who lived in the ancient city of Laodicea. Jesus said about these people, "I know your works. You are neither hot nor cold." These people lived in a time when positioned needed to be taken. They were called to make decisions. They chose to remain neutral. Thirdly, we can have a positive effect on the world. Lincoln was asked how he would like people to remember him. He did not ask history to remember his as president or a great leader. He said he wanted to be known as a man who "plucked a thistle and planted a flower where a flower would grow."

I have decided what I want on my tomb when I die: "He danced and he taught others to dance." This says a lot because I have not yet found my rhythm.