I turned 60 last year, and that, probably combined with the fact that I am now a grandfather twice-over, has given me some incentive to think about the proverbial meaning of life. And I've come to one conclusion, one that I hope has some usefulness beyond me.
Life certainly isn't about acquiring "stuff." We don't really acquire "stuff"; we basically rent it for a period of time. Thereafter, it's either disposed of or destroyed. What lasts a lot longer is the impact we have on people--our families, our friends, our colleagues/co-workers, our customers/clients, our neighbors, our fellow citizens, everyone with whom we come into contact. And, in a digital age, our ability to come into contact with people is greater than ever before. Even the smallest communication we have online can create ripples that, to echo Russell Crowe in "Gladiator," echo in history.
To me, it's a little like a baton race. Each of us gets to carry a baton for a time, and our lives, our experiences, our wisdom, our love, our hate, whatever makes us what we are and what we become, transform that baton, for better or for worse. And then, when we die, we effectively hand the baton off to those who survive us, and what we've done with it through the life we've lived either makes the race better, or worse. That's really what life is all about--handing off the baton in a way that makes the lives of others hopefully better.
Which is why I enjoyed reading this article about Sergio Garcia winning the 2017 Masters golf tournament on the birthday of his late mentor, Seve Ballesteros, and paying tribute to him in the process. In a very real sense, Garcia's triumph was also Ballesteros' triumph as well.
In other words, Seve passed the baton well. Congratulations to them both. And may we all learn how to pass it as well as Seve did.
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