A Legacy?

Am I supposed to be leaving a legacy? Honestly, what is my life expectancy? I am sure there are calculators online but I haven't bothered. I just know that I probably won't live as long as most other people born about the same time as me with the same general backgrounds.

As you know, my health sucks so I don't have the expectation of being the oldest living person at whatever age that is. I could also get hit by a bus tomorrow or my cat could trip me on the stairs. I have no idea when I will go but I will at some point, as all the rest of you will.

So my question is am I supposed to be leaving some kind of legacy to be remembered by? I keep reading articles about all these cancer people who leave a legacy of some kind. My husband and I don't have children so once we are gone that will be the end of us. I mean our siblings will probably remember us, if they are still around but no lasting legacy.

Should I be thinking up a legacy to leave behind? Do I want to be remembered as something or someone, some how? I consider myself a good person and donate to charities, volunteer, blog about my health crap. But should I be doing more? If so why?

I think I am curious about this because I am wondering if it would give new meaning to my life. Do I need new meaning? Do I need to get behind a cause? Do I need to come up with a new cause? Or should I just continue to be me?

Does anyone else think of this kind of stuff, healthy or unhealthy? We finish our education and go out to leave our mark on the world. Did I make a mark or should I try to make a mark some how? Or how do I want to be remembered?

Life is full of these little questions. Existentialist or not.

Amanda - you left a legacy

I learned about Amanda yesterday. She was Canadian. She was a goth. She has a brother named James. She hadn't talked to her mother for five years. I know a few little scraps about her because she tweeted her life @TrappedAtMyDesk.

Yesterday morning I read this article on The Meta Picture: http://themetapicture.com/the-final-messages-of-a-dying-girl/

Then I went to Twitter and looked up @TrappedAtMyDesk and read her tweets. All 169 of them. Go do that.

Then this morning I went back and found this video on Twitter.


It is one of the most powerful videos I have ever watched.

Finally I found this blog post by the creator of the video on the life we leave behind.

One of her last tweets was:

Don't spend time being angry at people. Forgive them. Life is entirely too short.

She left a legacy.

For the naysayers who said people with cancer shouldn't use social media? You are stupid and narow minded. Look what you could have learned.