My Life, Illustrated

As I was somewhere in that fuzzy area between wakefulness and sleep early one morning, I had a dream that made me stop and think.

I rarely remember my dreams, but because this one occurred as I was about to wake up, I remember it vividly. In my dream, someone had asked what kind of statue I would want to illustrate my life. There was no need to ponder the question. In a matter of seconds, I decided the following. The statue would show me wearing a Tilly hat (a wonderful washable hat to keep the sun off my head). I would have a camera in one hand and another around my neck. I would be wearing hiking boots or hiking shoes. Surrounding me would be a young elephant, a wolf and several dogs, including at least one golden retriever. And perhaps there would be an African student, engaged in reading or studying, as part of the statue.

This would be no simple statue of a solo person standing proudly on a pedestal. This statue would encompass everything I have stood for in my life. The cameras represent my passion for photography. The hat represents my love of travel. The hiking boots show my love of hiking and the outdoors. The elephant and wolf reflect my efforts to protect these and all wild species from being driven to extinction by humans. The dogs, of course, represent those domestic dogs -- 13 so far -- with which I have shared my adult life. The African student represents not simply the young Kenyan woman whose education I am sponsoring, but the value I have always placed on education. It also represents my love of the African continent.

So there you have it: my life as shown by a statue that will never exist. I'm not a famous or notable person. I'm not a wealthy philanthropist. I support a number of charities, but I'm no philanthropist. Nobody aside from a few people knows my name. I haven't had a major impact on the causes I most cherish: the environment, wildlife, domestic dogs, education. I'm not one of those people worried about leaving a legacy.

So no, this statue is simply the creation of a brain that was in the process of waking up. But that's OK. The dream clarified for me what I hope to be remembered for. And that's a good thing. 

What would your statue look like?