Penelope beamed with delight. She'd been foraging in the National Trust's second-hand bookshop at Kingston Lacy, and she'd found a treasure! That treasure was, "A Darzit Voice," by Beau Parke – "Poems and Stories from a Dorset Man."

In our village, where Beau lived, he was remembered for his poetry and stories, and for his much-loved friendly chatter. Penelope's find clearly triggered many happy memories.

Let's go back further in history. Dorcas, in the Bible, was known for her acts of kindness – specifically, "always doing good and helping the poor." When she died, weeping widows showed the Apostle Peter the clothes Dorcas had made for them. They were able to show Peter the evidence of what they remembered her for: kindness shown through her gifts of hand-made clothing.

"What do you want to be remembered for?" Your answer may surprise you! The idea for this blog came to me in the night – in that dream-like state between wakefulness and sleep. I knew, in this state, exactly what I wanted to be remembered for: my poems. Not what I thought I ought to be remembered for: the good Dad, the dutiful partner, the kind person, the generous giver. No! The poet! In my dream-like moment of clarity, I wanted to be remembered for my writing, my words, my voice. My logical-brain kicked in as I began to swim back to a more traditionally conscious level (you know, the one where you edit the answers!), and added more of what we might expect – kindness and music for me – and I'm sure you could add to the list – but the point had been made by my sub-conscious mind!

The unedited truth was out: poetry. The problem is, I don't write much poetry... yet!

Dorcas left evidence that tied her in to what she was remembered for. Beau published his poems so that he lives on, easy to recall in our memories through his books. Once you know what you'd like to be remembered for, ask yourself what the evidence would be to link you to that memory.

The call to action is coming next, but before it does, I want to emphasise that this is not meant to be a morbid blog about death! It's a positive blog to help focus you on your passion so that you can live your passion – doing more of what you love. Beau loved to write and chat; Dorcas loved to make clothing and give..

What do you want to be remembered for? When you can answer that, the next choice is easy: go and do more of what you want to be remembered for!

Lex

A Moodscope member.