My Special Tribute to My Namesake
With the passing of my grandfather this week, Charles Hudson Rothschild II, my namesake, I wanted to pay him a special tribute. This week I really got to thinking about Legacy. My grandfather was a great man and he passed on a lot of virtues to me that I will take with me. I loved sitting around talking and listening to him.
His generation and era lived through the real Great Depression. He taught me the value of money & to save. He taught me the value of work and tireless effort. The great part is if you love what you do, then you never work a day in your life. He taught me that your word was his bond and to say what you mean and mean what you say. You might be able to doubt what I say, but you can never doubt what I do.
He was a very strong and athletic man. Even in his old age he was a tough man with strong discipline. He was an astute businessman. But there was the other side. The big bear hug, the ultimate family man. He was a charmer. He never met a stranger and he always made you feel like the most important person.
As I look at my son & my future, what legacy will I pass to my son Charles Hudson Rothschild V… Life is more than what you pass on. It is what you do in the life you have. As Maximus from Gladiator said… What you do in this life will echo an eternity.
I cannot change my past, I can only learn from it. Since my future is unwritten, I have the pen and therefore the choice in what the ink says on the paper. Carpe Diem, live every day as if it were you’re last and live it to the fullest. Life is just a glimpse. You do not own anything… you just get to borrow it for a while. So make sure you leave the earth better than you found it.
You may or may not of read this poem, but this poem reminds us to live for today. Even if you have read it, then I hope you read it one more time and take it to heart.
The Dash Poem - by Linda Ellis
I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
From the beginning to the end
He noted that first came the date of her birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years
For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved her
Know what that little line is worth.
For it matters not how much we own;
The cars, the house, the cash,
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.
So think about this long and hard.
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left,
That can still be rearranged.
If we could just slow down enough
To consider what’s true and real
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.
And be less quick to anger,
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we’ve never loved before.
If we treat each other with respect,
And more often wear a smile
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a little while.
So, when your eulogy is being read
With your life’s actions to rehash
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?
©1996 Linda Ellis
I love you & will dearly miss you II.
IV
You may of seen this Larry Ellison video this week. He was talking about cloud computing and how it was the technology of the last ten years and is not the future. In case you did not see it.
