Writing Your Eulogy

Writing Your Eulogy

Oct 29, 2024


Have you ever thought about your eulogy?  What is it that you wish to be remembered for and by whom?  It’s a great exercise to ponder during these tumultuous times, because at the end of the day, well, there’s the end of the day.  

We die and we leave behind a legacy of some sort.  That legacy usually is passed first of all directly to our immediate family.  Next, to friends.  And, depending on who and what we did, our legacy ultimately impacts the community.  

Just as there’s no escaping death, there is no escaping our legacy.  No one lives in a vacuum.

A eulogy is a form of praise.  It is the summation of one’s life given in ten to fifteen minutes.  In that praise, there is the presentation of the legacy.  What is it in your living that made your life worthwhile?  Who were you and why? 

We are now in an age in which being mean, being cruel is considered clever and witty.  Being right regardless is considered a virtue.  Walking a mile in another’s shoes is the epitome of weakness.  Material wealth and security is more important than community.  If we fall prey to these sentiments, we risk a pretty lousy eulogy.  What’s more, a very small gathering at our funeral.   

Those who thump their chests and say a legacy doesn’t matter are the very ones who crave a legacy.  They are like Shelley’s Ozymandias, a figure whose legacy was built upon that of this world and is soon forgotten.  

If one explores the notion of a eulogy, writing about oneself from the perspective of death, it gives us a great key in how to live.  One thing that for me becomes obvious is my own personal need to always revisit the “why” of my existence.  By being an artist, I wish to bring joy and light into this world.  But if that’s my “why” -- am I living it?  What’s more, I have to live it and therefore commit to that reason for being in order to live a life that is authentic.   

That doesn’t mean I won’t have my days.  I will and I do.  Those days I wonder if my authentic life will have any impact on anyone, let alone myself.  That’s when the siren call of those “sentiments” arise.  You see, to be authentic doesn’t necessarily mean being noticed.  If anything, it is best felt when in a shared moment with others who are also on their path.  It also is when one can shine a light on another’s goodness in this world. 

So take a moment and write about yourself.  Write that eulogy.  What is it that you would want people to know about you?  What is your legacy?  Then, take that eulogy and flip it into the guidepost to help you to be your most authentic self.  

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