If you know me, you’ll know my love for the Broadway musical Hamilton. In fact, today marks the day that I am going to see it with my family! It is also my grandmother's 98th birthday, so what better date to mark the launch of Legacy Collective? Without going into detail about the numerous reasons why I love the show, I needed to share a quote that continues to stick with me and hopefully will stick with you. My husband brought my attention to one of our favorite quotes from the song, “The World Was Wide Enough.”
“Legacy. What is a legacy?
It’s planting seeds in a garden you never get to see.”
In December 2016, I traveled to the Philippines with my family for the first time - a trip where I was able to experience with my family, where my deceased father grew up. It was there that I realized the legacy my great-grandfather Vicente Hermosa Garces created, with much less than what I have. He was the mayor of Talisay, Cebu between 1925-1931. Through his work as a poet and a politician, he built a legacy for our family that still exists today. Businesses have been built and generations have thrived on property that was developed as a result of his work. There are articles circulating about his life and work that he has published. The house in which my father grew up is a historical landmark. Seeing this put my mind in a place where I realized how small I’ve been thinking my whole life. To pay homage to the impact his work has had on me, I included a mango in my logo, the celebrated fruit for which Cebu is known.
Before this experience, the word legacy has felt like something that wasn’t a part of my world. In my mind, it was something that was available only to those who were born from wealth. Don’t ask me why I thought that, I just did. Not only did my trip change that mindset, but many other factors have as well. Now I realize what leaving a legacy means, “how I can plant seeds in my garden that I’ll never get to see.” It isn’t so much about the wealth that has been accumulated and living lavish lives. For me, it’s about creating a community of people who find meaning in being a part of something that can only be great because of the collective intention of everyone behind it. The collective effort of everyone involved is what will create the legacy.