Hmmm, where does that vapour trail begin and end as it streaks across the clear, blue sky? Better question: How long will it linger after the jet that left its signature has passed out of our event horizon?
The first question is, of course, rhetorical. The second has deeper implications. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, these streamers of clouds – also known as ‘condensation clouds’ or ‘contrails’ – can last up to several hours. Elsewhere on the web I read that they can interfere with astronomical observations and may contain a toxic soup of chemicals.
They bring to mind a principle of life we all need to take to heart. Each of us leaves a trail behind as we carve our path through life. Footprints in the sand that can endure long after we are gone. Trails that intersect with the life paths of those around us – and those who come after us – altering their course. Sometimes for the better. Sometimes, unfortunately, for the worse.
There are those who believe that every footstep of our life is predestined. The course is set and there is nothing that we can do to alter it. But that’s altogether too easy and fatalistic for me. I chose to believe we are gifted with the power to make our own choices. We each have a destiny but how close we come to achieving it depends on the courage – and at times the selflessness – we demonstrate in making our choices.
The trails we leave behind do not last forever. Like the jet’s vapour trail, they linger for a time and then gradually dissipate. But in that space of time they can profoundly influence the lives of others and they become our legacy to those who come after us.
A vapour trail across the palette of the clear, blue sky. A random of metaphor for the legacy we spend a lifetime constructing. Footprints in the sands of time. What will your legacy be?
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