To be honest, I have been agonizing a bit on how to start my blog. What should I write about in my first post? I want it to send the right message of who I am and what my blog is about. I want to connect with readers. I hope my readers will glean some useful information, be inspired and be encouraged to live a better life today than yesterday. How do I possibly convey awesomeness, sincerity, confidence, humility and expertise all in one blog post?? Whoa…pressure.
To be honest, I have no idea of the perfect place to start (and have a hunch there is no such thing), but I will share a little from my heart of how I got here because I believe right here is where I am supposed to be.
For my career path, I have recently decided to more clearly focus on two areas of passion – women’s issues and spirituality. I’ve worn many hats in my 18 years of counseling but I started out with a dream to partner with women on a journey of empowerment. That is still the desire of my heart. As women, we are all at our own place in the journey. I love to meet women right where they are and assist them in creating their legacy.
Legacy. I happen to live in a place where the word “legacy” is over used. We have a main street in our city named Legacy and thus there are shops, banks, dry cleaners, pediatrician offices and much more with the word “legacy” in their names. In 2002, I decided to name my counseling practice Legacy Professional Counseling. Many people think the name was chosen based on geographic location. This was never the intention.
A legacy is defined as anything handed down from the past. We all have legacies. Some come from our family, others are from our country, race and/or ethnicity. Many times, ideas and beliefs are passed down as fact when actually it is part of a legacy. Look at the things you like and gravitate toward. Are your preferences influenced by your legacy? Probably so.
Some legacies are fun. We think of them as traditions. My family has quite a few traditions, especially during the holiday seasons. These are events which I remember fondly from my own upbringing and try to mirror with my own kids. My husband’s family has their own traditions and so we are constantly trying to figure out ways to include both. Other fun legacies include ways to spend summer vacation or even ways that families interact on the weekends.
Many of our legacies are centered around values. As I stated in my about page, both my parents came from big families. They grew up on farms and were given legacies of hard work. This is a value. The belief they instilled in me and my sister growing up was that if we worked hard enough, we could do whatever we wanted in life. My parents have remodeled 2 homes and 1 business (by themselves). If they hadn’t put in hard work to do it themselves – it most likely wouldn’t have been possible. This further reinforces the value and legacy of hard work.
Unfortunately, many women have been handed down negative legacies. The unfavorable legacies are of abuse, shame, perfectionism, guilt, and/or people pleasing. Often the weight of carrying this legacy is like trying to constantly carry and balance a huge boulder while pretending life is “normal”. Such pressure. However, putting the boulder down or dropping it brings more guilt and shame. One is then caught between two hard choices of continuing in the path she knows or abandoning what she knows for a possible guilt ridden, lonely unknown.
Good news! Our legacy does not define us or our future. As I stated before, some of the legacies seem to be facts but they are actually ideas and beliefs. As adults, we get to choose our own ideas and beliefs both about ourselves and about others. We have legacies that are passed down but then we get to decide. We get a chance to write our own legacies that we will then pass on to future generations.
If you are stuck or overwhelmed in life, it might be time to look at your values, thoughts and ideas and rewrite your legacy. It should be based on being the person you want to be…the person you want to be known as. One day, you will only be a memory to those around you. What kind of memory do you want to be? How can you live today to get closer to becoming that person?
More good news! Through a relationship with Jesus, we have an awesome legacy. A legacy of redemption. A legacy of hope. A legacy of substance. Jesus was a friend to the friendless. Jesus gave hope to those that were utterly hopeless. Jesus was a savior to many who never thought (past, present and future) they needed a savior. We can let our legacy passed on through Jesus be our guiding path to creating the legacy we would want to create.
My friends, I believe we will all be living a better life when we are consciously making decisions to shape and mold our present and future legacies. It is worth it!
“But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” – Matthew 6:20-21
