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Worthiness + Meaning = Legacy?

Being WORTHY. What does it mean exactly?

One of the meanings the dictionary gives is “someone or something that has desirable qualities and is entitled to respect or attention”.

Someone of a certain value. Usually, we immediately think of someone who is doing a lot of good to the society, thus leaving their legacy to be remembered for.

But who attributes a value to a person? Who decides if someone’s life is meaningful?

Recently, with a group of CNBC ladies we’ve talked about CREATING MEANING.

I think, the moment when we realize we’re not eternal, the fear steps in, and we start thinking about what’s the purpose in all this. What will I leave behind when I’m gone? What will be my legacy?

I believe though, there’s a difference between meaning and legacy, and it lies in the PURPOSE of what we’re creating. For me, meaning is something personal, and only when it crosses the borders of our personality it becomes subject to the social justification, thus passing to the“legacy category”. Someone said, “Meaning doesn’t need understanding”. I’d add, meaning doesn’t need VALIDATION (by others), either, unlike legacy, which always has a touch of social importance to it.

Donna Ashworth,a writer whom I only got to know about recently, has said:

Who will remember you and for what, become important factors as you age. Your love and your wisdom will live on far longer than any material thing you can pass down. Tell your stories, they can travel farther than you can imagine.

So, I say, we are worthy! For being us. For holding on, for moving forward. For telling our stories. They help us heal, and this is their meaning, their value, their worthiness. And this is also the legacy we leave to those after us, as they can have a hope by seeing us survive and live happily ever after.

Julia Fominova

Photo by Manasvita S on Unsplash