Legacies

So, this past weekend was a bit emotional for me since I’m done as an active coach. I wrote a blog post about it, Beginnings, Endings, Legacies…but somewhere in my fuzziness, I didn’t really address the idea of legacies. The English teacher in me is severely upset for a misleading title (then again, it’s the social media age, so what’s another inaccurate title among friends?)

Legacy is a heavy word.

Legacies are usually used in terms of famous people, political leaders, but ultimately, everyone has one. Everyone has something they leave behind for others–sometimes it’s tangible (money/inheritance), sometimes it is a philosophy or ideas adopted by others. Most of the time though it is what remains in the memories of others.

Just as important, legacies are usually post-mortem affairs. It is rare to think of a legacy of your own–indeed, it’s downright awkward, let me tell you!

So what do you want in a legacy?

Obviously I have quite a bit of time now to ponder it, think about it.

Let me make an aside here–legacies can be tainted and perverted. Consider what is done in the name of Jesus or Allah. Or for a great short book on how you can create lasting legacies, it’s worth reading “The Marble Man” which documents how white Southerners turned Robert E. Lee intentionally into an ‘American Jesus’.

So–what do I want my coaching to be remembered for?

I’d like it to be for the relationships: *The friendships with coaches and officials *The relationship evolution with athletes from player-coach to mentee-mentor to friends and colleagues *Cooperating with assistants and then watching them become head coaches in their own right

I want it to be for my students’ academic success. That has set us apart from 95% of the schools we compete with. It’s also what sets up the next point–> I’d like it to be for the athletes’ life successes, that I was able to help them become better humans, helped them find careers and avocations that they find rewarding.

I’d like it to be that everyone knew where they stood with me. I never lied, never reneged on a promise. Mistakes? Oh, good god…thousands.

I’d like it to be that if you looked at everything I did as a coach, asked the question “Is this in the best interest of the young person?” that you’d be able to see my logic, that I believed the answer was ‘yes’ and followed that course.

I’d like to think people understood I saw coaching as service, that as I reached my 30s then my 40s, and then my 50s, I realized it was about the kids not me and that with each year that passed, I gave all I could for their benefit.

I want those who taught me, mentored me to be proud–that I took the gift of their teaching and wisdom and payed it forward, that I took all that was good that I was taught and passed it down the road.

That’s really about it. Really.

So if you regularly read the blog, sorry for this follow-up bit. But having read it, consider my situation…then consider where you are in life. What is YOUR legacy? What do you wish to be remembered for–do you think what you wish and what others will say will be the same?