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How Do You Want To Be Remembered?

During one of his mini-recollections, Fr. Jonathan shared this beautiful text: 

LIVE A LIFE THAT MATTERS
Ready or not, someday it will come to an end.
There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days.
All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten, will pass to someone else.
Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance.
It will not matter matter what you owned or what you owed.
Your grudges, resentments, frustrations and jealousies will finally disappear.
So too, your hope, ambitions, plans, and to-do lists will expire.
The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.
It won't matter where you came from, or on what side of the tracks you lived, at the end.
It won't matter whether you were beautiful, handsome or brilliant.
Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant.
So what will matter?
How will the value of your days be measured?
What will matter is not what you bought, but what you built;
not what you got, but what you gave.
What will matter is not your success, but your significance.
What will matter is not what you learned, but what you taught.
What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion, courage, or sacrifice that enriched or empowered others to emulate your example.
What will matter is not your competence, but your character.
What will matter is not how many people knew you, but how many will feel a lasting loss when you are gone.
What will matter is not your memories, but the memories that live in those who loved you.
What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom and for what.
Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident.
It's not a matter of circumstance but of choice.
Choose a life that matters. 
Found out the original title of the text is What Will Matter, written by Michael Josephson. It's a good reminder for us especially during this Holy Week. As we ponder on the life, passion, and death of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, let's also think about the way we live our lives. Do we live a life that matters? A life for God and for others? Or are we just here to survive? 

MAGIC! has a beautiful song to help us reflect further: 

How do you want to be remembered?
As a sinner or a saint, as a hero or a villain?
Think about the steps you take
How do you want to be remembered
When they're standing at your grave?
On your tombstone, what is written?
Think about the steps you take

All my life I've been searching for the answers
How did I lose so much of the things that really matter?
Is there no paradise, cause I feel no joy or laughter
Seems everything I touch only turns into disaster
So I ask myself...

How do you want to be remembered?
As a sinner or a saint, as a hero or a villain?
Think about the steps you take
How do you want to be remembered
When your children come to aid
And they need some inspiration?
Think about the steps you take

Do I reach for love only when she says she's leaving?
Do I pray above only when I feel I'm needing?
See I can't sleep at night, when sheep turn into demons
There's no alibi when the jury knows your secret
So I ask myself...

How do you want to be remembered?
As a sinner or a saint, as a hero or a villain?
Think about the steps you take
How do you want to be remembered
When your children come to aid
And they need some inspiration?
Think about the steps you take

Cause on the day when you face judgement
You better have your story straight
Were you a good friend and a husband
To the wife that gives you love, love, love
You love, love, love, oh

How do you want to be remembered?
As a sinner or a saint, as a hero or a villain?
Think about the steps you take
How do you want to be remembered
When they're standing at your grave?
On your tombstone, what is written?
Think about the steps you take

Photo Credit: EndlessImpact.com
We all have a choice. Let's choose to live a life that matters. Let's all leave a legacy of love, joy, and peace, just like Jesus did. :)
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