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when you’re gone would you rather have your gravestone say, “He never missed a meeting.” Or one that said, “He was a great father.” A lot of good stuff in this

by davi 17y ago

when you’re gone would you rather have your gravestone say, “He never missed a meeting.” Or one that said, “He was a great father.” A lot of good stuff in this article, but what a weak ending! "He never missed a meeting" is a straw man, here. Tougher would be to have to choose between: "He was a great father," or, "He changed the world/discovered something great/made something that millions want."

run4yourlives 17y ago
Personally, I'd still pick "He was a great father".
- deleted 17y ago
  [deleted]
  - run4yourlives 17y ago
    EDIT: I'm not sure why you deleted your comment, as there was nothing wrong with it. In the interests of the thread I'll include it here: I hear you, and probably will agree when the time comes. But when we work our asses off, hopefully we're not doing it because we want a perfect attendance record. We're doing it because we think we're on the track of something great. Yeah, but those reasons are ultimately selfish. When one becomes a parent, one of the most dramatic changes you will notice is that it will become: What is best for my child. It's a tremendously powerful bit of evolution.
    - davi 17y ago
      those reasons are ultimately selfish I don't know if that's right. There can be altruism in medical work, for example; and great scientific discoveries and artistic accomplishments have a pan-human, almost spiritual significance, at least for me -- like gifts to the species. But I take your point: even if it's not a conversion from selfishness to "what is best for my child," but rather a conversion from altruism or pursuit of a masterpiece to "what is best for my child," the conversion still happens to a lot of people. And when it happens, it feels right. ---- p.s. sorry for the comment churn, your comment wasn't posted when I deleted my comment (which I realized was essentially just a more vehement restatement of my top-level comment).

by davi 17y ago

run4yourlives 17y ago

Personally, I'd still pick "He was a great father".

deleted 17y ago
[deleted]
- run4yourlives 17y ago
  EDIT: I'm not sure why you deleted your comment, as there was nothing wrong with it. In the interests of the thread I'll include it here: I hear you, and probably will agree when the time comes. But when we work our asses off, hopefully we're not doing it because we want a perfect attendance record. We're doing it because we think we're on the track of something great. Yeah, but those reasons are ultimately selfish. When one becomes a parent, one of the most dramatic changes you will notice is that it will become: What is best for my child. It's a tremendously powerful bit of evolution.
  - davi 17y ago
    those reasons are ultimately selfish I don't know if that's right. There can be altruism in medical work, for example; and great scientific discoveries and artistic accomplishments have a pan-human, almost spiritual significance, at least for me -- like gifts to the species. But I take your point: even if it's not a conversion from selfishness to "what is best for my child," but rather a conversion from altruism or pursuit of a masterpiece to "what is best for my child," the conversion still happens to a lot of people. And when it happens, it feels right. ---- p.s. sorry for the comment churn, your comment wasn't posted when I deleted my comment (which I realized was essentially just a more vehement restatement of my top-level comment).