There's a meme that's quite popular that I see people post on their pages from time to time. I'm sure you've all seen it.
I've seen many different responses. I see a lot that are historical: Jesus, Gandhi, Shakespeare, Tesla. There's the artsy: Beethoven, Elvis, John Lennon. There's the personal: a lost loved one. And there's the adoring fan: my favorite movie star, my favorite musician.
The first moment I saw that meme, my response was immediate. I knew, without having to take any second to contemplate, who was going to be on that bench with me.
Who is it?
It's Cal Worthington and his dog Spot!
Ok, that's not who it would be, but who could beat those prices? Plus financing is available!
Who would I want to sit down with on that bench? I don't know if this sounds narcissistic, but it would be me, five years from now.
Sure there are others I would like to sit down and chat with. There are many people with great knowledge and wisdom from which I can glean, and I know that I would benefit greatly from that hour spent, but there's only one person from whom I can learn the most.
He is the person who is going to experience all the consequences of my actions. He is the only one who can tell me that what I'm doing now is right or wrong. He is the effect to my cause.
I could gain great insight from people of the past and learn many things from their wisdom and experience, but not not one of those men (or women, for that matter) could validate what I'm doing.
Do I need validation? It would be nice from the one person who can bring it. :) But this meme has always been metaphorical. In essence, it's designed to show us more about ourselves, and it reveals that, while I'm confident where I'm going, I'm not certain I'll get there.