Time spent with loved ones leaves a legacy

I awoke this morning with memories of my grandfather, “Pops,” flooding my mind.

I smiled as I thought of the times in my child hood when he would work all day in the hot Florida sun; at the end of the day, I would bring him his glass of just-brewed sweetened sun tea with a drop of lemon.

We would sit down and chat about whatever came to mind. As happy tears started to fill my eyes, I realized I will forever cherish those memories.

My grandfather was born in 1919 and grew up in a family of 16. At the age of 13, his father passed away, so he took it upon himself to drop out of school and get a job working on the railroad to help support his family.

He eventually went off to serve in World War II, then went on to make a wonderful life for himself.

I don’t know if a day went by I didn’t see a tool in his hand as he worked tirelessly on the next project with a big old smile on his face and nary a complaint.

At the end of those hard-working days we would sit on the floor and play games and we would laugh for hours.

He knew when it was time to stop working and put his needs aside for someone else’s. Being with him taught me the importance of hard work, when to slow down, how to be selfless and how to sit back and just enjoy the moment.

In today’s world, there is so much focus on “me” – when, actually, happiness comes from the outcome of hard work, helping others and making memories with our loved ones. Whose life are you going to leave a legacy of memories to?

“True leaders don’t invest in buildings. They invest in people. Why? Because success without a successor is failure. So your legacy should not be in buildings, programs, or projects; your legacy must be in people.” – Myles Monroe