Pride News Canada's Leader In African Canadian & Caribbean News, Views & Lifestyle
By Sandy Daley
Pride Columnist
In life there are no certainties, and death and taxes are the only things that we can be certain of. Yet, with each passing day, we are given the opportunity to make the best of this life that the Lord has given to us, to make an impact, to leave a legacy, to mark your footprints in the sand.
A friend of mine, a well-respected and well-known film director, once said to me, “Sandy, as an artist (which you are one, as am I), you must realize that you are leaving footprints in the sand, and even when you are long gone from this earth, you will always be here in some way shape are or form.”
I totally agree with his analysis, but still wish to take it a little bit further, as it is my belief that we all have the opportunity to leave our footprints in the sand; if only we act upon our God given talents and abilities.
Are you living your life in order to leave your footprints in the sand? Are you honing in on your skills, talents and blessings in order to maximize your legacy or your time here on this earth?
Like you, I too suffer from procrastination, challenges, fear and self-doubt, and only when I focus, am I able to work on my challenges, face my fears and push away my self-doubt, and just do what has been planted in my heart.
It certainly is not an easy task, but working towards one’s overall purpose in life will allow you to then do as my friend suggested and ‘leave your footprints in the sand’. This does not guarantee that you will become wealthy, famous, respected or even well liked, as material things do not bring you happiness or even popularity.
Your goal is to find what you are truly passionate about and hone in on that skill, that talent, that drive; and do not look back! Your skills might be in carpentry, construction, nursing or even writing. To each his own I say!
We are all given gifts to call our own and we all have a responsibility to use that gift to the best of our ability, as through our differences we will certainly make this world an interesting place to live. It will also show us that we have more in common with our fellow man than we actually think! Your talent was given to you to make something of. Do not waste it away.
And there, my friends, your footprints will then be left in the sand, by you and you alone! We are not all the same creatures and we all are not created to be artists, writers, hairdressers or lawyers; so find your talent and run with it.
As generations to come will then see your work and be aware of what was happening during your lifetime, what your experiences were, and will respect what you have left behind. Your work will speak volumes to them!
Doris Lessing once very eloquently said, “Humanity’s legacy of stories and storytelling is the most precious we have. All wisdom is in our stories and songs. A story is how we construct our experience. At the very simplest it can be: he/she was born, lived, died. Probably that is the template of our stories – a beginning, a middle and end.”
This quote could definitely be a guider of sorts for artists, writers, poets and many in the creative world, yet I believe that each person has a specific quote that represents them; so that at the end of our lives, we may all leave this earth not only in peace but also with the knowledge that we can all write our names in the sand in bold, capital letters.
As a child I would scribble on every bathroom stall or every notebook that I could get my hands on: “SANDY DALEY WAS HERE!” Bwoy, I feel like a kid again!
Sandy Daley is a columnist, radio and television personality and actress. She is also the author of “Whose Vagina Is It, Really?” She can be contacted at: Website: www.sandydaley.com, Facebook: womanincontrol@facebook.com, Twitter: twitter.com/whosevaginaisit and/or Email:thesinglegirlspot@gmail.com.
