Brett Favre and Me: Leaving a Legacy

It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, 

and only one bad one to lose it." - 

Benjamin Franklin

I've been thinking lately--

well, as much as my noggin will allow, right?--

and not to get morbid here,

because some people don't like to think of 

their own mortality.

But I do, 

and I've been wondering what 

my personal "legacy" will be

when I've cashed in my chips,

taken a dirt nap,

passed on,
kicked the bucket,

departed,

taken a trip to the

Garden of Sleep...

well, you get the picture--

what will be my legacy,

my reputation?

What will my yahoos tell their yahoos

about Dear Ol' Momza?

I bravely put the question out there

this past weekend,

here are the responses:

Nana: "I'm not talking about this. It makes me sad."

Daisie: "My Mom was nuts."

Joseph: "You're awesome and you're not dead. Can I go play now?"

Ari: (puts her arms around my neck) "That I love you. No fair that Joe gets to play,

can I go to Natalie's?"

No help.

I tried calling Dani and David Scott to ask them,

but they didn't answer.

And when they called me back later,

I forgot the question.

Oh well.

What got me really thinking about

legacies is the word

"reputation"--

as in a person's reputation

and what that means.

Ben Franklin got it right.

We're all innocent until proven otherwise.

We all have a great reputation until we don't.

Brett Favre.

I'm not a big football fan.

I endure football season because my Mr. Wonderful

IS a football fan.

My one contribution is Super Bowl Sunday cupcakes.

no kidding.

But I know who Brett Favre is...

was.

As far as I knew 

he was a family man.

a Christian.

a Granpa.

And there's something about him being a really 

good

Quarterback for a zillion years in there too.

And being a really good Quarterback,

I'm sure he has said "No" to many temptations

in his life.

I'm sure he has turned his head,

closed his eyes,

locked his heart,

and walked away

from temptations more than we will ever know.

Until he didn't.

And now he has another reputation.

This one he didn't want.

This one that pains his wife and family.

This one he probably never thought he'd have.

And that stinks.

He changed his own legacy
and not for the good.
What can he possibly do now
that would blot out this stain on his reputation?

Whatever he does,
it'll always be in a foot-note in every article
that will ever be written about him.
No matter all the good he has done,
the charities he's contributed to,
the repentance he offers,
it will be there like a bad penny
always showing up at the bottom of my purse.

Which makes me grateful
I am just a speck on this earth.
I'm not going to be on the five oclock news--
unless my house burns down
or I'm found wandering around,
clueless to my own identity,
chompin' on a Three Muskateers
and wearing my underwear over my clothes.
"Woman Found Eating Chocolate and Wearing Only Her Underwear--next on NewsFour!"


Hey, it could happen.

Okay, back to the point--
I've made mistakes.
If my kids were being honest,
they have alot on me--
the good
the bad
and the ugly.
Who I am now,
is not the same person I started out as...
I've evolved.
I've read books about parenting,
wife-ing,
Live-ing,
Choos-ing
and Own-ing my life.

And while I wish I could've absorbed every good thing
I've ever read and made it apart of me instantly,
I'm sorry to say that only a fraction actually took root
and that stuff took awhile to grow
and even longer to blossom.

I'm not perfect.
Sheesh.
I hate that word.
I am not even nearly perfect.
And yet,
I hope that the legacy that is left
when the dust settles
and the stories are passed down
from one generation to the next,
that if my name is ever mentioned
it will to the tune of:
"Youre just like your Granmomza--she was so fun."
or
"That was Dawn's favorite hymn."
or
" Mom loved pie."
or
"Remember that time when Mom dropped the whole pan of spaghetti sauce and it
exploded everywhere?"
or
"Mom always chose her Super Bowl team by their jersey colors, and that's how she chose Super Bowl cupcakes too!"

I don't know.
That's really kinda naive to think of only the positives.
But, as Joseph put it so well,
I'm not dead yet.
So there's still time to make amends for my flaws and flubs
and hopefully,
they'll just be footnotes in the legacy I leave.

On Brett Favre,
I hope he makes his life right again.
He's got alot of work to do.
That's something he and I have in common:
We both have time to do it.


What about your legacy?
Any thoughts?