“If you’re going to live, leave a legacy. Make a mark on the world that can’t be erased.”
-Maya Angelou
As graduation and commencement ceremonies have been underway, it may be the optimal time to consider the question of "legacy". Graduation, defined as the act of conferring or receiving a degree, implies that which has been achieved. Commencement translates to the act of beginning or starting and can specifically refer to the celebration of graduation. Often used synonymously, the two terms are distinct. As we consider graduation we are celebrating the past; whereas with commencement, we are looking ahead to the future. Ahead there is a road yet untraveled and one filled with endless opportunity. Hence, as graduates look ahead and "commence" with their next steps, they have choices to consider, each one interrelated and/or leading to the next.
What path do I choose?
How do I want to traverse the path?
What kind of person do I want to be?
How do I want to be remembered?
What will be my "legacy"?
As I have interviewed medical school applicants throughout the years, the question "When you are 100+ years old, looking back on your life, what do you wish to be your legacy?" is the one that I have found to be the most meaningful, insightful, and inspiring. Essentially, I believe this question can be equated to how you wish to live your life and want to be remembered. A legacy is more than a list of accomplishments on a resume/CV and is greater than the tangible (e.g. wealth, possessions). Legacy, defined by Merriam-Webster in its noun form as "a gift by will, especially of money or other personal property," has come to mean so much more through the years as it can extend to the remembrance of an individual encompassing their entire lifetime.
Paralleled to a personal statement where one introspects regarding the question of "Who am I?," the question of legacy next leads to determining "Who do I want to be (and how do I want to be remembered)?". Each is difficult to answer and perhaps explains both the thoughtful and emotional responses I have received. I still recall a student who, when he was asked this question regarding what he wished his personal legacy to be, welled up with tears. He emotionally said that it was a good question, but he needed to take a few moments to think about his answer. It seemed to strike a chord with him as he said that he had never pondered his overall purpose and aim in life outside of his career aspirations. He has not been alone among the applicants queried about legacy. As I have asked this question, there is always a pause. A moment when I see a change in facial expression to one of thoughtfulness. Similarly, when I ask myself this question, it also gives me pause and is a reminder to me of how I wish to live my life.
Now though, returning to the time at hand, congratulations to all graduates as you celebrate your graduation, be it from high school, college, medical school, or from any other completed achievement. You deserve recognition and kudos for your accomplishments!
Then, as you now commence on your journey forward, I wish you the best with your next steps. May you have success in that for which you work diligently and with passion, and may you have joy both in your work and, perhaps more importantly (for some or for many) all that lies outside of what is defined as your work or career. As you proceed as a college student, medical student, or (resident) physician, there are specific areas that you will have to master and hurdles you will have to overcome. As you traverse these, looking back on my own journey, I realize that it is not just completing the necessary steps but it is HOW you choose to do so that matters.
I hope that we can each answer the personal question of what we wish to consider a life that we deem worthy of living by considering how we want to live our lives.
Sending out wishes for joy, peace, kindness, and compassion for all,
With gratitude,
Sincerely,
Dr. Vora
P.S. For those contemplating an undecided legacy, a suggestion to consider that I seem to come back to often is the quote “I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” -Maya Angelou.
Rupal S. Vora M.D., MPH, FACP
Founder, MedStudentCoach LLC (medstudentcoach.com)
Associate Clinical Professor, Internal Medicine, Creighton University School of Medicine
(Prior Assistant Dean of Student Achievement, ATSU-SOMA)
