I read a quote recently that stated that children don’t follow our advice they
follow our example. Living the Legacy means living that set of values and
principles handed down by our parents that help us raise our own children.
No matter what we accomplish in this life, there is no greater success than
to provide a good example for our children to follow. It sets them up for a
life of kindness, humility, and grace. When we realize that love is all that
really matters in our lives, it gives us the ability to not just survive our trials,
but grow and become all we can be in that process.
I had a father who taught me to give. He was the finest example of kindness and forgiveness that I’ve ever known. I followed his lead in my life. He was not famous or well known but he was a great man. My father was raised in a children’s home in the 1940s at the end of World War II. His parents divorced and sent their six children in many different directions to be raised by family members and orphanages. He was four years old when he was left at a children’s home by his father.
Instead of living a life of resentment and growing up with pain or anger, he grew up a kind and giving person. His life was not easy and his sweet nature was not broken by his circumstances. He forgave his parents for what they did in abandoning him and his siblings. I never heard an unkind word come from him when he spoke of his parents. He loved them unconditionally. I learned from his great example to forgive everyone everything.
His actions molded and shaped who I grew up to become. We weren’t a wealthy family and when he passes away 11 years ago, he didn’t leave us much monetarily. My father left me with something much more valuable, something money can’t buy, his legacy of love. I taught my children the lessons I learned as a child, how to be forgiving, loving, and how to make this world a better place. I did my best to teach my children to make a difference in the world and to love others as they wanted to be loved themselves. It’s one of my greatest joys to see them with their own children, providing a good example for my grandchildren.
I had a father who taught me to give. He was the finest example of kindness and forgiveness that I’ve ever known. I followed his lead in my life. He was not famous or well known but he was a great man. My father was raised in a children’s home in the 1940s at the end of World War II. His parents divorced and sent their six children in many different directions to be raised by family members and orphanages. He was four years old when he was left at a children’s home by his father.
Instead of living a life of resentment and growing up with pain or anger, he grew up a kind and giving person. His life was not easy and his sweet nature was not broken by his circumstances. He forgave his parents for what they did in abandoning him and his siblings. I never heard an unkind word come from him when he spoke of his parents. He loved them unconditionally. I learned from his great example to forgive everyone everything.
His actions molded and shaped who I grew up to become. We weren’t a wealthy family and when he passes away 11 years ago, he didn’t leave us much monetarily. My father left me with something much more valuable, something money can’t buy, his legacy of love. I taught my children the lessons I learned as a child, how to be forgiving, loving, and how to make this world a better place. I did my best to teach my children to make a difference in the world and to love others as they wanted to be loved themselves. It’s one of my greatest joys to see them with their own children, providing a good example for my grandchildren.
Three years ago my 27 year old daughter passed away from complications
of childbirth. Her death would have made it easy for us as a family to be
bitter and angry. We lost her and my first grandchild, a beautiful perfect little
boy. I have been told by many that they don’t know how they would have
survived this kind of loss. I know I was prepared to deal with my trials in life
through what I learned as a child. My father looked for the positive in all
that happened to him. He told me many times that everything happens for
a reason, even if it’s only to teach us what not to do.
I think living by example is the greatest gift you can give your children. I gave my sons and my daughter my father’s heart because it was inside of me. My children are my living legacy. I would not be who I am without the lessons of my father and the love of my children. It’s a simple thing really. Each generation benefits from the lessons of the last one. I believe that’s the purpose of my life, to leave that living legacy when I die. To me there will be no greater joy, than to know my children will carry on in their own families, our living legacy.
I think living by example is the greatest gift you can give your children. I gave my sons and my daughter my father’s heart because it was inside of me. My children are my living legacy. I would not be who I am without the lessons of my father and the love of my children. It’s a simple thing really. Each generation benefits from the lessons of the last one. I believe that’s the purpose of my life, to leave that living legacy when I die. To me there will be no greater joy, than to know my children will carry on in their own families, our living legacy.
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