Legacy Letter
Now that you have looked at your relationship with self, your relationship with the other, and your relationship with society, it is time to look at what kind of legacy you will leave behind when all of those relationships are over. It has been said that, “All good things must come to an end.” This reality that things reach some sort of end is not only true about life, but it is also true about relationships, including the relationship you have with me as your ENC 1101 professor and the relationship you have with your peers in this class. As our relationship comes to an end, it’s time to leave behind a piece of who you are with everyone in this class. That small piece of who you are, beyond the experiences we have already shared, stands as a portion of your legacy and will be the primary focus of your final exam.
You will be leaving with us a “Legacy Letter.” Some people also see it as a Eulogy Letter. It is a letter that you leave behind after you die (or end a relationship) that could/may be read to let people know things about you that they may not have encountered or experienced, or it gives an account, from your perspective, things that you have experienced or accomplished that you want others to know about you. This ONE letter is written in THREE parts. Basically, you are writing THREE short stories. Each story accounts for one experience or accomplishment: the catch is that each story must come from a different time period of your life. Here are the three time periods that you will be covering in your story: birth – 6, then transition to your next story which should be from 7 years old – 14. Finally, your last story will be from 14 – Present.
This assignment is not intended for you to do it alone, in that you rely independently on your own memories. It is a conversation starter for you and the people who would or could eventually come to a funeral service for you. Speaking with your loved ones also helps if you cannot remember a story that reflects something about you for any given time period. Particularly, some students find it challenging to think of a specific story from early in their life. You definitely want to ask a loved one about the kind of person you were, but many of us already know that kind of things we did early in life that showed a people a piece of our personality. These stories are usually stories that highlight who you were to others and they reflect personality traits that many people say makes you significant.
Spend a few moments thinking of the attributes, experiences and stories that you want to represent your legacy.
Jot a few attributes down. Talk to people who are involved in the experiences that reflect those attributes. Finally, begin writing your letter, starting it with some sort of introduction about the intent of the letter. (Please do not begin the letter with “This is my last will and testament” or something about death). Rather, I imagine you starting off this type of letter with:
Dear Friends and Family,
I am going to spend a few moments reflecting on three short experiences that I hope people will share with others that are part of my legacy. At the time of writing this, I am (insert age, status, college level) and in a few years I hope to be (status, college goal, career goal). While many know me as (insert attribute or professional status), one of the early stories that come to mind that represents who I am happened at age (insert age from birth to 6 years old).
**Begin your story here, focusing on narrative tone** Be sure your story stays in past-tense. For this assignment, you can use passive voice verbs, and you may or may not have dialogue. Just be sure each short story follows narrative flow. Each story can be as short as one paragraph or contain multiple paragraphs as long as you tell an actual story that represents you during that time period.
No more than $40.
