What will our legacy be?
It is easy to become wrapped up in the eternal present, the everlasting now. More so in our time than any other. 24-hour news cycles, bloggers, pundits and anyone with an Internet connection can render instant judgment on the stories of the day. But what, then, is the value of perspective? And where is its place in society?
Trying to predict the legacy we will leave behind is one way of gaining perspective, to look at the world with fresh eyes. It is an exercise that asks us to put some distance between what we believe and value and what future generations will believe and value. Only by getting outside ourselves, and outside our present moment, can we begin to understand our true nature as individuals and our place in history.
Of course, this sense of perspective is useless if it does not provoke a reaction. If it does not motivate people and institutions search constantly for a sense of identity and purpose, it is of no help. Because after the dust of our present conflicts settle, future generations will only be left with our words and deeds to judge us by. Our intentions, good or otherwise, will be lost, washed away like footprints in the sand. How would you like to be remembered? Perhaps more importantly: How will you be remembered?
It’s almost impossible to determine our legacy because it requires taking a step back. we don’t know where society will be in the future, so we don’t know from what prospective the future will judge us by, or through what lens they will look at our generation.
We have the potential to change our legacy anytime we want. As of right now, we have a mixed legacy. We are a society that will be remembered for the destruction of the environment, for global warming, for poverty and other detrimental events that have occured during our generation. On the flip side, we will also be remembered in a good light because of the (few) people who have dedicated their lives to fixing the worlds problems, one at a time.
