As we age, we learn who we are and realize that our legacy is all we have. What will you leave behind – money on which your family can survive, and flourish and often permanence, ensuring that your name will remain somewhere forever. Life is short. We also seek recognition in death.

As we age, we also recognize why we are who we are.

I’ve been called rude. There’s nothing unfair about the label, but here’s the caveat: it comes with candor. My directness is umbilically connected to journalism and an inability to feel emotionally about the circumstances of most people, including athletic teams (except the Cowboys). The folks I most admire are not athletes or celebrities.

I’ve been called selfish. There’s nothing unfair about the label, but here’s the caveat: it’s a mechanism of protection. Let’s be honest, you must care before anybody else does, even if that doesn’t always work.

I’ve been called negative. There’s nothing unfair about the label, but here’s the caveat: it also is a mechanism of protection. If you expect the worst out of people you won’t be disappointed. I consider myself cynical, which leaves a window for positivity, even if the level is seldom met.

Don’t regret; those thoughts are weights that will not strengthen progress. They make you who you are, and every moment is a chance to learn and grow.

Have a cogent reason for decisions and mean what you say. To be clear, emotions and personal results aren’t what’s at stake.

Don’t allow others to be disrespectful, which permits dismissiveness and condescension. That’s my 38^th parallel.

I’d like to think this reflection is cathartic but I’m not sure.

In case you’re wondering, I’m not dying, so there’s that.