As you prepare your estate documents, along with the usual gifts of personal property and financial assets, there is another bequest you may consider that can be just a valuable. One of the most loving gifts you can give to your family is a clear and comprehensive written “Legacy”; specifically a life’s narrative to be handed down through the generations.
When you share the story of your life, you open a window to past events and make them real for your children and grandchildren. Those who hear your stories gain a sense of continuity and knowledge about where they “fit in”. Stories provide a sense of history and roots, and they transmit your values.
There are more than six billion people on the planet and a firm belief that every one of us has a story to tell. We all do the best we can with what we’ve got, spend our lives trying to determine what is most important, face huge obstacles, and learn from our worst mistakes. Is it possible that with so many stories, each one is important to everyone? Hardly, but every one of those stories is important to someone: to the person whose story is being told, and to those closest to that person – their family.
Also called memoir writing, legacy writing is probably the most important writing we do in life.
It is taking the wisdom of your life and spinning it onto the page to lead your readers to a conclusion by letting them live in the shoes of the storyteller. Legacy writing is taking what has been most profound in any one person’s existence, and bringing it to life so that future generations can intimately experience it too. What could be worth more?
Have you ever thought about stepping back in time, getting to know one of your long lost relatives, and being able to see the world through their eyes? What would it be like to know someone who is now lost to you, or to have pages and pages of their life story at your fingertips to revisit at any moment? This is the gift of legacy writing, and the power of a memoir.
Your memoir is a chance to introduce yourself to the next generation, to tell your story in your own words and explain your feelings and experiences. Legacy writing is your opportunity to let others share in your journey.
Taking time to create a legacy leaves something that can be a family treasure for generations. It enables people who have learned so much in their lifetime to share that wisdom well into the future. Just as we pass a physical estate to our families, it is important to do the same with an invisible estate – the meaning of our lives.
Take a moment to discuss the importance of legacy writing with your family. You may wish to help an elder preserve their memories or someone may even volunteer to help you do the same. Whether you pen your written legacy yourself, or enlist someone to help, the experience of getting your story down in your own words will certainly be satisfying and transformative.
Mark La Spisa
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