Friends and family,
A very close friend sent this to me after he went through this incredible journey of life. I have been so moved by its words that I wanted to share it with you this holiday season.
Happy Holidays!
kennyGene
December, 2009
Live a Life that Matters
Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 9:35am
I went to my third funeral in three weeks yesterday. One of my professors and my advisor from KU died following injuries in bike accident. One his favorite poems that was printed on the program, and one he discussed in our class, really stands out to me. I hope you find greatness in these words. I sure do.
Live a Life That Matters
WHAT WILL MATTER
By Michael Josephson
Ready or not, someday 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 pass to
someone else.
Your wealth, fame, and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance.
It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed.
Your grudges, resentments, frustrations, and jealousies will finally
disappear.
So, too, your hopes, ambitions, plans, and to-do lists will expire.
The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.
It won't matter where you came from, or on what side of the tracks you
lived, 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 bought, but what you built; not what you
got, but what you gave.
What will matter is not your success, 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 that live in 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. It's not a matter of
circumstance but of choice.
Choose to live a life that matters.
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