So, apparently, my friend Marsha has some kind of a muse deal going on. Here’s a muse definition I like:
• (muse) a woman, or a force personified as a woman, who is the source of inspiration for a creative artist.
Marsha is certainly a woman, though I’m not sure I’m quite a “creative artist.” Either way, she indirectly reminded me of a character called “Rosie the Riveter.”
From Wikipedia:
“Rosie the Riveter is a cultural icon of the United States, representing the American women who worked in factories during World War II,many of whom worked in the manufacturing plants that produced munitions and war supplies. These women sometimes took entirely new jobs replacing the male workers who were in the military. The character is considered a feminist icon in the US.”
I know about Rosie, because I am a HUGE nerd at times and spent most of my childhood reading about WWII and building military models.
Here are a couple of the most well known images of the “Rosie” Character:
And, here is a REAL “Rosie the Riveter” building what looks like a bomber or fighter aircraft in the 1940’s:
And here is another:
And another (I know, technically, she’s welding…)
What’s YOUR Legacy as a Woman (or a Man)?
Gary Vaynerchuck says: “Legacy is greater than currency.” That’s kind of his thing and he likes to remind us that we’re living in an age with such incredible ability to create, store and share information, images and video, that our Great, Great Grandchildren are going to see EVERYTHING we’ve done. LIKE, ON AN INDIVIDUAL LEVEL. In other words, YOUR Great, Great Grandchildren are going to know what YOU did with YOUR life IN DETAIL.
So, the question you need to ask yourself is: What are they going to see when they look back at all the digital “stuff” that’s going to be your legacy?
It’d be pretty cool if they were seeing something like this:
Or this:
Or this:
BIG THANKS to Wild GorillaMan for the pics and the inspiration! (Don’t worry, bro, I won’t call you a muse…)
Besides pictures, what about words? Did you inspire? Did you lead? Did you challenge the status quo in whatever way it was that you were passionate about? Did you create something that was bigger than you as an individual to leave behind?
Back to the Future…
It’s 2010, the U.S. is at war, and there is a whole new generation of women and a whole new generation of IMAGES that will define this time in human history. What are the images YOU are going to leave behind?
And, since times change, let’s not forget that there are plenty of women on the front lines overseas, so images like these will be part of the legacy too:
The United States of America is the greatest nation on earth. I won’t get all ranty and passionate about that now because I already did that here.
What I WILL say is that we live in an incredible age of information and technology and we really should put some thought into the legacy we’re leaving behind for the generations to follow. We should also be very thankful that we have the FREEDOM to create that information…
A Little Off Topic, But…
I’m going quickly off topic here and I hope you’ll indulge me. I just CAN’T talk about WWII without thinking about my Grandfather, Stanley W. Aronson. We only lost him a few years ago and he is deeply missed. You can bet HE left one hell of a legacy behind…
This is “Stan” shortly after getting drafted into the Army during WWII:
We miss you, Stan!
ttys
Adam
I’d like my son to know that his mom is strong, confident and loves him very much. I’d like other people to see what I have done and be motivated. My personal inspirations have been my mom, grandma, some great friends and most recently my coach. Being strong feels great!
Awesome, Lorene! Take lots of pictures!
Adam
I think this is a great subject. I have my own beliefs about legacy, I believe that a legacy is left in a moment, what is remembered once we have left this life is the culmination of those moments.
So focus for me is in the moment and more importantly, the impact I have on those around me and my environment in that moment. I hope that what this all culminates into is a belief that I lived as a caring and thoughtful (man), that had a selfless approach to supporting others and growing his own being.
What legacy will be left by you?
I would like to take this opportunity to give you some feedback; I am unsure about having the (men) or (man) in brackets? this seems to support the notion of division, we can be different and we are, but we can also be together as one, supporting and driving for a world without separatism but equality .
I hope you don’t mind the feedback as it is delivered with the intention of supporting, if I can be of any further support please feel free to drop me a line. 🙂
Thanks, Dominic! I take your point on the brackets! I’ve had tremendous response to my original post about strong women – Strong is the New Skinny – and have been inspired to write some posts on strong women and geared to a female audience. I guess you could call it an “impromptu” series…
The overwhelming response to that post has inspired me to give as much as I can to that audience!
Adam
Also you could you post views with the permission of the writer on your wall to drive traffic and conversation on your blog. Its a great blog and I will support its development as much as I can…..
Wow!!! these women have even bigger arms than my boyfriend or even any other man I´ve met. Great pictures
“Strong is the New Skinny!” LOL
Adam
We need to turn the future of our Planet around, we need to be stronger, healthier, more creative people than ever before. My job is to do my part as a role model, if I can do it, anyone can do it. One strong women at a time, and our Planet with be a better place. That is a Legacy.
Awesome, Cheri! Are you a Seth Godin fan by any chance?
Adam
Awesome, Cheri! Are you a Seth Godin fan by any chance?
Adam
A good friend turned me on to Seth, I get his daily words of wisdom!
He’s great!
Adam