What do I want people to think of
when they remember me
my friends, my family, my observers and passer by-ers...
I was thinking about the things I don't want people to think of me
the other day,
things that I know people have,
assumptions or conclusions people have made about me
with very little knowledge of my story
where I have been or where I am going
People have decided
This is who she must be
Without every really knowing who "she" is.
Those who have spent hours upon hours
talking to me,
laughing with me
crying with me
know that I have a story,
but very few know the whole story.
But as we all do at some point,
we make a guess of what is going on in another persons life.
As much as I don't like to believe I care what others think,
to some degree we all do.
But all I can do is strive from this point on
to be the person I want people to know
The person I want people to remember
What would people say about me if I was gone?
Would they cry
While just a year ago they were talking about me behind my back?
Would they care?
Or would they think to themselves
would they say outloud to others
She was a wife to her husband,
I remember how much they laughed,
how much they cried,
but in the end how earnestly they loved.
She was a mother who adored her children
and they were completely in love with her.
They had her wrapped around their fingers.
Life got a little crazy and chaotic for her
but she laughed in the face of tears.
Would they say
She was brave, She was strong
She finally found where she belonged
Her heart had beauty etched in it
because she shined with the beauty of the one she loved most,
her Jesus.
She worked hard to point others to the love of Jesus
She was a worshiper without the music
She was a preacher in the non traditional form
Even though she was busy with her kids and her life,
She was a friend who didn't give up,
a friend who was there if you needed her
Even though she was busy with her kids and her life,
She was a friend who didn't give up,
a friend who was there if you needed her
She cared for people.
She saw the broken and knew they needed hope.
She saw the broken and knew they needed hope.
She was a writer, an artist, a poet...
Yet so few knew
In her life, she emanated the Joy of the Lord and the Glory of God
When she laughed it made others smile,
When she cried it stirred compassion to reach out
How do I want to be remembered when I die?
I want to be remembered for the passion behind my words,
the sparkle behind my eyes
the compassion overflowing in my veins
and the lover of beauty seen through the eyes of our God.
I don't want to be remembered as a sad story,
a story of regret, a wasted life
I want to be someone people will miss,
because they will miss the passion and beauty that was placed inside me
I want to be sure people know that I love them,
not just with weak human love, as great as it may feel at times
but with a greater love than I can make sense of
I believe the person of Jesus had so much more beauty and integrity and love,
laughter, joy, faith, encouragement than we can ever really fathom.
laughter, joy, faith, encouragement than we can ever really fathom.
I want to be like him.
A beautiful girl I want you to know...