Just a thought that crossed my mind today.
If I was to ask everyone that you’ve ever interacted with (IRL) what their general opinion of you is, what do you hope the most common answer would be?
Would you hope they consider you a successful person, physically attractive, smart, the best in your field, etc?
Personally, my answer is “A good, kind person. Friendly and helpful.”
Just wondering what the rest of feel.
EDIT: Based on the first few responses, I’m thinking I should have clarified better.
I’m not talking about your legacy after you’re dead, I just mean right here, right now. You have left an impression on people. That is inevitable. Surely there aren’t that many people that don’t give a fuck what anyone thinks, but I must admit, it is a valid answer. Maybe you are the person who doesn’t give a fuck what anyone thinks. 🤷🏻♂️
I don’t.
Someone who really was helpful and friendly and supportive.
I honestly think obscurity wouldn’t be that bad, that would be a victory
i grew up in a BIG mormon family.
a decade or so ago, a group of 20-ish cousins and i were sitting round the campfire at the reunion. they all discussed among themselves and decided that i am the original black-sheep of the family and they thanked me for being a strong role model for their own journey out of the truly awful mormon religion.
i am very proud of that.
That may be one of the most inspirational stories I’ve heard yet! Proud of you! Fight the power!
I have no need to be remembered by anyone. Memories and legacies are fake human constructs that we’ve made up. We live approx 60ish years and then die. Only kids and or some relatives/spouses will remember you for another few decades before they die too and you’re completely forgotten.
To hang onto the idea that you must leave a legacy behind and be remembered by other people just adds unnecessary stress to one’s life. Not a single person cares about anyone except for themselves (save for some people who may care in some manner about their significant others, kids, maybe a best friend).
I refuse your opinion. There might be a time, a place, a random conversation where I’m remembered. I want people to take my name in a good way, not like Hitler.
It’s not illegal to care about others, you will get something back in life if you help others. Build favours.
To be honest, your comment seems like a huge cry for help.
That’s okay it’s not your opinion so you’re allowed to refuse it. I don’t understand what you mean when you say it seems like a huge cry for help. Could you elaborate?
My guess is that it sounds depressing.
I suppose under a certain lens realism can be viewed as depressing. But when you remember we are all stardust, born from explosions, a rare occurrence in and of itself that resulted in our lives, one doesn’t need remembrance to feel special about themselves. That becomes somewhat trivial in the grand scheme of the universe.
In fact it almost seems like a cry for help to want to be remembered, like as if you are so fearful of death that you’d waste the time you were given making others think you’re somehow better than the rest, when the truth is we are all more alike than we are different.
Anywho, that’s just my perspective on things, cheers
Ya the way you described it is how I feel. The human need for being remembered suggests eternal permanence, which is not compatible with the way we understand physics and how the universe works. Nothing is permanent.
Is it weird that i dont want to be remembered? I just want to fade into nothingness. None of it matters anyway
Doesn’t that depend on the person? I’ve interacted with many people in different ways over the years, and if I made an impact on them it’s probably not something that a couple of words would meaningfully encompass.
To put it differently, if I think about people who have passed away or people who used to live close to me but now live far away so we’re no longer in contact, the people where I think they changed my life or how I think or feel, talking about them always involves telling a story, or maybe two or three. And that’s how it should be, right?
“He was just starting to get pretty okay at playing the Appalachian dulcimer.”
My favorite Appalachian hammer dulcimer Christmas album got removed from Spotify a few years ago and I’m still upset.
https://open.spotify.com/album/5XFQyFEhplzuNheYBsCWXL (link to the unplayable album).
Apparently I could download it from Christian bookstore. https://www.christianbook.com/scott-miller/appalachian-christmas/pd/DL153578-CP
I hope friends will occasionally remember having fun with me and smile.
Like this:
“You want my treasure? You can have it! I left everything I gathered together in one place. Now you just have to find it.”
The one after Luigi.
I want to be remembered as that guy that once threw his socks in the hamper and BOTH went in.
Woah there buddy, let’s be realistic here!
I hope I am one day a sort of Patronus Charm that my kids can utilize to ward off crippling thoughts.
Actually I really like the idea that I will die and join the legions of humans who lived interesting lives and disappeared in the sands of time.
