When Senator Ted Kennedy passed away the other day, my brain starting thinking about the legacy a person leaves behind. Legacies are funny things, and they run the gammut. You can live your life in solitude and affect no one, leaving NO legacy. You can work queitly behind the scenes and make a substantial difference without a soul knowing or giving you credit. Or you can be a leader, speaking out strongly and reaching out to a broad swath but not going as deep as some might like. Once in a great while, there are men & women who get the opportuity to not only affect people on a broad scale, but a profound one as well. Ted Kennedy was one of those men.
Sen. Kennedy was in the United States Senate for nearly 50 years-- literally hundreds of pieces of legislation have been authored, co-authored, sponsored or co-sponsored by this man. He stood up for not only the people of his home state of Massachussetts, he stood up for ALL Americans. He was known as a "liberal lion" for his passionate and booming floor speeches, and his influence spread across the globe. But that wasn't the only side of Ted Kennedy. For a man with such a famous name and such a tight schedule, he was there to touch the lives of individuals in profound ways.
While considering the life of a public servant in light of Kennedy's passing, my boss decided to hold a fireside chat with interested staff here at the firm. At noon today, about 20 of us gathered in the large conference room as Joe Genshlea began reminiscing about his own life as it played out during the era of Camelot and the ensuing decades that ended with the Senator's death. These memories and stories lead me to think about my own legacy-- what am I likely to be remembered for? What do I want to be remembered for? Will I be known as just being the akward, goofy but lovable nerd I was in high school? Or would I be known as a guy who tried desparately to fit in and hide aforementioned akward, goofy but lovable nerdiness? Would people see me as a passionate servant of my community, or an overly ambitious politico who never really finished what he started?
The legacies we leave behind actually DO matter. They serve to inspire the next generation. Sometimes they serve to WARN the next group to come. Most people know the definition of legacy, but for those that don't, there's two chief definitions in reference to what we're talking about:
- a gift of property, esp. personal property, as money, by will; a bequest.
- anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor: the legacy of ancient Rome.
The legacies we leave behind are immensely important because we are bequeathing knowledge, experience and actions to those we love.
It often takes death-- either of someone high-profile like Kennedy or someone closer-- to make us acknowledge the fragility of life. It is common to take stock of what we have and what we have yet to achieve and often renews the importance of living every moment of our lives to the full.
One of the Kennedy brothers' favorite poems came from Tennyson, who wrote:
'I am a part of all that I have met;
... Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho'
... that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
... strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.'
I know what kind of legacy I want to leave behind. I want to be known as someone who was thoughtful, caring, generous and willing to do the hard work it takes to make our community and country a better place to be. I want to be a part of something bigger than myself, and to be a contributing member of society. Its probably something many of you feel as well, but something most of us don't have the guts to make reality out of fear and self-consciousness.
The Kennedys inspired me in throughout my life. It was President John F. Kennedy (with a little help from one of my heroes Ted Sorenson) who said "ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country." That speech stands out as one of the 20th Century's greatest political moments, but JFK inspired me more when he was on the campaign trail accepting the Democratic Nomination in Los Angeles in 1960. He said:
We stand at the edge of a New Frontier—the frontier of unfulfilled hopes and dreams, a frontier of unknown opportunities and beliefs in peril. Beyond that frontier are uncharted areas of science and space, unsolved problems of peace and war, unconquered problems of ignorance and prejudice, unanswered questions of poverty and surplus.
When I first read those words as a little kid with boundless curiosity, I knew there was more to life than having a job, paying my taxes and living a quiet life. I wanted to help explore that New Frontier and chart, solve, conquer and answer-- or at least TRY.
When Senator Robert F. Kennedy decided to run for office in 1968, he brought with him a different legacy, one of motivating and determination. Bobby Kennedy spoke in Cape Town, South Africa against apartheid when he said the following:
"Give me a place to stand," said Archimedes, "and I will move the world." These men moved the world, and so can we all. Few will have the greatness to bend history, but each of us can work to change a small portion of the events, and then the total -- all of these acts -- will be written in the history of this generation.
Bobby Kennedy taught me that serving others is not only fulfilling selfish needs to feel good about one's self, but also to help shape the future. If we don't see the arc of history being bent by our actions, what are we doing with our lives?
Finally, Senator Ted Kennedy said in his most famous speech (his concession speech after losing the 1980 Democratic Presidential primary), "For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die."
Teddy Kennedy taught me that persevation and dedication to a belief helps make a person's legacy a whole one. We cannot forget these lessons the Kennedys taught us about dedication to service and leaving behind a legacy for those that come after us.
What will your legacy be? How do you plan to achieve it?