If I were to die next month, what would I leave the world? What would be my legacy? Is 19 years enough to say that I have completed my mission on Earth? It's such a brief time but one can never know when his time will end.
King Tutankhamen was approximately nine years old when he became a pharaoh and reigned for ten years. He died at a 19 yet he was one of the most famous pharoas to ever live, a legacy worth honoring. While a begar somewhere in Quiapo dies unoticeably at ninety with no one ever knowing his histocrisy and few remember his name.
So how do you measure a life's worth? The song Season's Of Love from the musical Rent comes into my mind. So okay, let's use their unit in measuring a man or woman's life: Love. Quality not quantity of love; Depth and not only breadth of love.
Even if I was so sick with flu, I attended a eulogy service earlier this afternoon and people weren't saying that this guy was a consistent dean's lister of La Salle. They did not emphasize that he's a varsity, a choir member nor a dance troupe member. They mattered to him because of (as cliche as it may get) the way he touched their lives, as a bestfriend, brother and son.
All of a sudden, my low QPI didn't matter that much. Yes, school (different from education) is essential to give you a job, and jobs are important to give you money that you may use to make your lives more comfortable through earthy possesions. I mentioned this because I'd like to attack the ritualists' mentality wherein they study/work for the sake of studying/working or getting money. They loose sight of the bigger picture - that's why we need the humanities subjects, but let's not get into that.
I'd like to share with you what I wrote on my yearbook page back in high school:
As I shut the door and open a new one to embark on another journey on this so called Life, I took a trip back at the familiar memory lane and find myself stuck within its gray alleys. I was once a student, like any other student with hopes to graduate and dreams to excel. But then, after I flipped the pages of my high school life, I found that I was painted in a bigger picture of people existing not for me but because of me. In this four year rollercoaster ride, my greatest success would be the discovery of my identity. My quest then was to achieve excellence in all the fields but I realized that there are more important things than academics. I was able to influence people and that to me is the greatest harvest that I reaped for all the hardwork. I never wanted to be forgotten easily and through the people I have influenced, my memories will be remembered, will be immortalized. With this in mind, I can finally break free. The sand bar is high and I'm ready to leave.
My message hadn't changed after three years.
Every man is an island, we are born and will die alone. All that matters is the love we share with others in between.
When I'm cold and I'm lonely, who will cover me with a thousand sweet kisses?
Dear readers, how do you want to be remembered?
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