About Me

A Woman of Dignity & Grace

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Honoring Andy Kessler's Life & Passion

This morning while I was getting ready for work I overheard a story of Andy Kessler who was guy who had a passion for skateboarding. He was responsible for creating the skateboard scene in NYC. During his plight, he attended public hearings and fought for what he believed in - that NYC needed skate parks and skateboard areas.

This entry is not really about skateboarding at all - see Andy died at the age of 49 from an allergic reaction to a hornet sting. I never knew the legendary skateboarder personally but my admiration for him is now profound. He was able to take a passion of his and open it to the masses. I'm not sure if he was credited for how he changed the NYC skateboarding scene while he was alive but he now receives the respect from fellow boarders young and old. Some of the benefited from skate parks are Riverside Park and Pier 20 on the Hudson and even in areas in Brooklyn this is all due to Andy Kessler passion, drive and hard work.

Then I began to reflect on my own passions....if I was to die today what legacy would I leave behind? What would they say about me at my funeral? My obituary would say what? This may be a bit much for some people to digest but I'm not thinking about my death but about did I live my passion while I was here. What did I share with others? How many hearts did I touch? Just think about it and you can decide if your cool with they way you living your life and if suddenly you were to die now you've lived your life to the fullest. If not, guess what you can begin right now to touch a life, a heart, a person... Leave your legacy.

This moment of honoring Andy Kessler has once again made me reflect on my life.

3 comments:

Felicia said...

What a thought provoking post.

Very nicely done.

Mocha said...

This is interesting that you wrote of the skate boarder & is impact on society. I've often thought of this myself. In terms of my own journey & legacy (not that I consumed w/death) but I had an aunt sho died of breast cancer & she was so prepared that she wroter her own obituary & purchased her dress, coffin,limo beach. This made me reflect & I worte my own obituary just to evaluate it I'm traveling in the path that is honorable enough to leave behind. I think I've come along way but I still have a lot of work to do... My Blaze is still making its trail!

Journey said...

I just came across your post honoring my best friend, Andy Kessler. He would have been truly touched by what you shared because he felt his purpose on this earth was to help young people find their passion.

Andy taught kids how to skate (sometimes even giving them their first board), surf, sketch, etc.

Helping kids and adults connect to their joy and find the fun in life was his specialty. I missed him today and decided to seek out pics of him and found this post instead. Thanks!