Legacy Writing

Traditionally Memorial Day is to honor the memories of those we've lost, particularly those who sacrificed their lives in military service for our country.

Why do we plant seeds, saplings and seedlings with hope in our hearts each spring? Why do we relish harvesting in autumn? We plant in order to harvest -- not just for the moment but to preserve and nurture the future.

We are always in some kind of transition of our ideas, in our personal lives, in our relationships, in the seasons of the year and in our country's public life and the world.

Whether we have such legacies from our past or not, let us commit this day going forward to offer our own written words of caring and love to those who matter most to us. This writing will open our hearts.

Given our material world, it's hard to remember that the holidays are our cultures' ways of expressing the holy. No matter what faith you profess, these days, like all days, are an opportunity to express our spirituality, our seeking the divine in and beyond our world.

We are all competent enough to write "legacy letters," and to feel confident that we have something worthwhile to communicate.

For whatever reason, at a certain time in our lives we become aware of a deep yearning for our family roots. Preserving and passing on those roots of our history is the sacred act of legacy writing.

How do we individually echo the larger changes happening today in nature (earthquakes and tsunamis) and our political worlds (revolutions throughout N...

Courage, a value that we've seen practiced and heard much about at home and around the world in 2011, is what we'll concentrate on in our legacy writing this month.

The legacy of civility, beyond our personal hopes for our families and loved ones, is imperative in our own country and the world.

Writing legacy letters (spiritual, ethical wills) is a response to the deep human yearning in us to articulate and preserve who we most authentically are and by what values we have lived.

How does telling our stories benefit us? We need to know and express our own stories. Telling our stories is not an end in itself, but an attempt to release ourselves from them, to evolve and grow beyond them.

Legacy is a vital part of a life well-lived. Whether you travel by foot or by heart, honor the journey as an important part of your life and legacy.

As women, our mothers remain not just with us, but in us. Our connection with mothers is stronger than memory, a kind of permeation that goes beyond anything verbal.

Names function as a compass connecting us to our families and communities. Stories about how and why we were given our names give substance and significance to our names.

Consider common statements used in our culture: "Time is money." "Time marches on." "Time is precious, don't waste it." "Time flies." We're less attuned to: "Take time to smell the roses."

Legacy writing addresses our need to belong, to be known, to be remembered, to have our lives make a difference, to know we're blessed and to bless others, and to celebrate life.

As 2010 begins, may your writing be a source of insight and wisdom for you, and a gift of blessing for those who come after you.

Holiday rituals and traditions connect families over the generations. Communicating our memories and stories can revitalize this year's holidays, and even encourage family healing and forgiveness.

All of us yearn to be blessed; all of us need to be held securely in the love left so often unexpressed by our families and friends.

Ethical wills are about values, not valuables. But what about the category of stuff -- of value or not?

Our daughters and granddaughters, texting and twittering, can't imagine a world before computers, or television, a world when American women didn't have the freedom to vote.

Though we're not all professional caregivers, we all care for and about others. Legacy writing gives us a way to express our caring as we care for ourselves.

Realizing that life is fragile we feel the urgent need to document our legacies to help shape this unfolding new world.