Being Remembered Or Being Meaningful To Someone.? What Really Matters To Me

Sometimes, I think about what people will say about us when we are no longer here. Will they remember our names?, will they remember the things we did?, or will life simply move on and people will forget us?

Personally I believe most people want their lives to mean something. Of course nobody wants to feel like they came into this world and left without making any difference.

But then, I have asked myself, is it really important for many people to remember us?

For me, there is a difference between being remembered and being meaningful to someone.

A person can be known by many people and still not have a real connection with most of them. People may know someone's name, know what he achieved and even talk about him after he has gone, but how many people could actually say that the person made a difference in their lives?

Sometimes, it is not the person everyone knows that leaves the biggest mark.

For instance as a teacher, I have seen different pupils and students struggle academically, if a teacher who encourages a child when the child was struggling in school, later leave, she may not know that those few words of encouragement would stay with that child for many years. Or maybe a neighbour who helped someone during a difficult period, It may have been something small to the neighbour, but to that person, it meant a lot.

These people may never become famous and their names may not be written anywhere. But somebody will remember what they did.

I have also met people who probably don't know that something they said or did stayed with me. It may be a simple conversation, advice or even an act of kindness. They probably forgot about it long ago, but I didn't.

That is why I think an average life can still have a great legacy.

You don't have to become a millionaire, a celebrity or a popular person before your life can have meaning. Sometimes, your legacy can simply be the way you treated people.

A mother who sacrificed for her children may not be famous, but her children will always remember her.

A teacher who took her time to help a struggling pupil may not receive an award, but that pupil may never forget the teacher.

A friend who stood by someone during a difficult time may not realise how much that support meant to that child.

These things may look small to other people, but they can be very big to the person who experienced them.

I don't think leaving a legacy mean doing something that the whole world will remember, sometimes, it is enough to leave something good in the lives of the people we meet.

Of course, I wouldn't mind being remembered. I think everybody would like to know that their life was not forgotten. But I would rather know that I was meaningful to a few people than have many people know my name without really knowing the kind of person I was.

At the end of the day, we may not be able to control how many people will remember us after we are gone, but while we are still here, we can choose how we treat the people around us.

If one day I am no longer where I used to be, a few people can say, "She was there for me when I needed her," or "She treated me well," I will consider that a meaningful life.

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