The Gap

Perhaps it’s a little too morbid for some people to think about their death, or their life in relation thereto. I wonder, though, if one’s life can actually be measured without their death being taken into consideration. Mind you, I don’t refer to the process of dying, but to how each person’s life looks once they are gone. However uncomfortable it may make you, it’s in my nature to reflect upon such things for some folks live what looks like amazing lives without leaving much of a legacy. You may climb mountains, invent velcro, set some kind of athletic record, or even discover a whole new solar system. Yet, if in the course of those pursuits, we leave a trail of divorce, deceit or compromise what have we really accomplished? If the events of our lives, however lauded or highly regarded or written about, are merely self-serving then perhaps we already have our reward in full. Pictures in the newspaper, even lofty words chiseled into stone, usually serve no greater purpose. As living creatures, we must realize that life is about the living and to make an impact is, therefore, to have affected other lives. We are also spiritual creatures and it makes sense that what is recorded in Heaven may be of far greater long term value than any report of our exploits here on earth. Our resumes tell the tale of what we have accomplished in life, but I fear they leave much of the story untold. In much the same way, the introductions given for famous people before they speak tout the tangibles of life while ignoring many of the precious intangibles. Perhaps our resumes should include how many times we’ve been married, whether we are estranged from our children or failed to pay child support, whether or not we call our mothers or failed our neighbors or stood by our friends through the most difficult times in their lives. If one is to truly make a mark in the world, it must be upon the hearts of individual people. In the end, that is the test of a life ... not how much strangers thought of our achievements, but how much love we showed to those whom God sent our way in life. That is the measure of a great man or women. It also means that each of us, regardless of our strength or speed or intelligence or musical ability, can still aspire to greatness and make a real difference in this world. Let us, therefore, live in such as way as to make our lives count.

The Gap
When I bid adieu to life
To all of it's travails
When my spirit passes on from here
And the memory of me pales
When the flowers from my funeral
Have long since been thrown away
And another person sits at my
Old desk each business day
When the relatives have flown home
When the violins are gone
Will there be any sign of me
Will my legacy live on
Was my contribution such that
I'll be missed throughout each day
Or will my memory, like my life
Just simply pass away
Will there be a gap where I once stood
Will anybody care
Was mine a vital, needed role
Or was I simply there?
By Frank Carpenter ©