Thursday, November 21, 2013

How will they remember me?

It's a weird thing to sift through someone's "stuff". You expect to have to do that when a loved one dies; but when she's still alive, it just feels like the ultimate "creeping".   But you can definitely tell what's important to a person by the things he/she keeps over the years.  Or by the things her loved ones pick up to take home.  It might be the family Bible. It might be some special jewelry or collectible. It might be Christmas ornaments or even the pot she always used to make holiday dinners. And, while all of this is important in family memories, "stuff" is not the legacy I want to leave. 

When I die, or just need my family to take care of my things, I hope they enjoy looking through all of the things that were important to me in this life. I want them to be surprised by some of the things I kept and to reminisce  over souvenirs from family vacations.  I hope they don't mind that I kept every paper they brought home in Kindergarten, but as space got filled, I only kept a few important things. I'm sure they'll get frustrated at some of the "junk" that will now be "their problem" (and yes, I forgive them in advance for renting a dumpster :) ) But that's ok, it was MY stuff, not theirs.  They will accumulate their own stuff that means something to them.  I don't want them to feel like they have to hang on to every little muumuu I ever wore  to bring honor to me. (I don't wear muumuus yet, but I plan to live to be old enough to have the chance!)  Look at it, relive it all and then let it go. (Unless you want to keep it, then feel free-it's yours. hee hee.)

 I was reading 1 Kings 5:3-4 today. "You know that my father, David, was not able to build a Temple to honor the name of the Lord his God because of the many wars waged against him by surrounding nations. He could not build until the Lord gave him victory over all his enemies. But now the Lord my God has given me peace on every side; I have no enemies, and all is well." (A letter from King Solomon to King Hiram- a close friend of Solomon's father,  King David.)  David has passed the job of building the Temple onto Solomon, his son. But more importantly, Solomon has embraced David's God as his own.  THAT is the legacy I want my family to find in my "stuff". As they sort and separate through my life, they find  that the thread woven through it all is "God was her God." And that's not enough. I want them to say "God is my God." That is what a legacy is after all, right? Anything HANDED DOWN from the past.  It's not sifted through and discarded, but taken home and treasured. I don't want my family to take my gingerbread man collection home and put it in the center of their table and say "This is who Mom was". I want them to take my love for God and make it their own. And then go out and build something that lasts forever!!