LEGACY, n. A gift from one who is legging it out of this vale of tears.
–-Ambrose Bierce, The Devil’s Dictionary
While doing some background work for yesterday’s post on Wassily Kandinsky, I was reminded of one of my favorite passages from the artist:
In the final analysis, every serious work is tranquil….Every serious work resembles in poise the quiet phrase, ” I am here.” Like or dislike for the work evaporates; but the sound of that phrase is eternal.
This concept of the I am here has been a big motivating force for me throughout my career. Actually, probably back to my earliest remembered days. Even then, there was always a desire to be heard, to have my existence acknowledged in some tangible way. It was a powerful inducement to me that a book, a poem, or a piece of art might be left behind so that someone in the future who might stumble across it and recognize something of themselves in it. Maybe even inspiring them to do something to make their own voice heard.
I think this idea of leaving something behind that tells the world you exist must be a universal urge. The many examples of ancient graffiti in Greece and Egypt and even those first prehistoric handprints in caves around the globe attest to this. The image at the top, Kilroy Was Here, was a ubiquitous image from WW II. Though it was attributed to US troops, it was a symbol of all the allied soldiers. The simple-to-draw Kilroy, derived from a British cartoon character from the late 30’s, appeared everywhere the allies fought in all sorts of places from the sides of fighter planes and tanks to barracks, bombed out buildings, torpedoes, missiles, and on and on.
It is said that Stalin encountered the drawing on a bathroom wall at the Potsdam Conference and was upset by it. It is also reported that even Hitler was made aware of it as so much of the ordinance was hitting German positions carried the slogan.
It is now even part of the World War II Memorial in Washington. Even Bugs Bunny encountered it on a trip to Mars.
Those cavemen, those ancient Greeks, those troops — they all understood the I am here. The idea of some small evidence of themselves left behind. It’s a powerful driving motivation.
Believe me, I know.
Here’s a song on that subject from Sean Rowe that I played several years back. This is To Leave Something Behind. His strong, deep voice really adds a dimension to this song. Good stuff to leave behind…
