~What will Matter~

I'm a poet at heart and that's no secret. Sometimes words ring so true and hit so deep that I feel inspired to spread them. This poem in particular really reached into my soul and enlightened the core of all I've been learning lately. Of course I simply must share it's wisdom!

What Will Matter
By Michael Josephson


Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end.
There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours, or days. All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten, will pass to someone else.
Your wealth, fame, and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance. It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed. Your grudges, resentments, frustrations,
and jealousies will finally disappear.
 So too, your hopes, ambitions, plans, and to‐do lists will expire. The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.
It won’t matter where you came from
 or what side of the tracks you lived on at the end.
 It won’t matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant. Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant.
So what will matter?
How will the value of your days be measured?
What will matter is not what you bought
 but what you built, not what you got but what you gave.
What will matter is not your success but your significance.
What will matter is not what you learned but what you taught.
What will matter is every act of integrity,
compassion, courage, or sacrifice 
that enriched, empowered, or encouraged others to emulate your example.
What will matter is not your competence but your character.
What will matter is not how many people you knew but how many will feel a lasting loss when you’re gone.
What will matter is not your memories
but the memories that live in those who loved you.
What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom, and for what.
Living a life that matters doesn’t happen by accident. It’s not a matter of circumstance but of choice.
Choose to live a life that matters.