Delano Herald Journal

Serving the communities of Delano, Loretto, Montrose, MN, and the surrounding area

Jenni Sebora Column – 08/05/13



My youngest daughter participated in a summer youth theater through the Watertown Community Education program. She loves theater, performing the stage and she can’t get enough of it.

For five weeks, five days a week for three hours a day, the children put their theatrical creativity to work. The play was an original piece written by the director. The songs and dance were created by the music composer and the music director.

The play focused on various time-traveling adventures throughout history and the future, as well, including: the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Susan B. Anthony Voting Protest, Gettysburg Address, and Colonization of Mars. Each era created legacies. However, the play focused on not just famous legacies, but legacies left by people less known.

My daughter played the part of a daughter of a general store owner during the Gettysburg Address time. The storeowner and her family left a legacy of kindness, and compassion to her customers. I was teary-eyed by the end of the play.

The played ended with the entire cast asking a question of the audience, “What will your legacy be?”

This is a powerful question, and a question for all mankind. What can we each do to enrich the lives of others – what positive impact can we each have on our families, others, and our communities? What do you want your legacy to be?

In a lecture or class session that my husband, my son, and I participated in at a college visit this summer, the professor proposed that we are what we do. Our actions are a portrayal of who we are. Now, does that mean if we make mistakes, we are terrible people? Of course not. But how we choose to live our lives, how we treat others, the activities that we are involved in, paint a picture of who we are. Actions are louder than words.

It is a reminder that you don’t have to be in the public limelight to have an impact. Just as the small store owner and her family left their legacy of compassion and kindness in their community, we can each leave a legacy that has a positive impact on someone or something.

And we should teach, and more importantly, role model this for our children.

What will your legacy be?








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