Our Legacy

In Thorton Wilder's play Our Town, Julia Gibbs confesses to her neighbor and friend that she is going to sell a piece of furniture to save for a legacy.  She wants to use this legacy to travel to Paris because she wants to "visit a country where they don't speak English and they don't even want to." But, she never gets to go.  In the final scene, which takes place in the cemetery, the audience finds out that her son and daughter-in-law inherited the "legacy" and used the money to purchase an automatic watering trough for the farm.

Now having a small farm that raises animals, I appreciate the purchase of anything that improves the farm, helps the animals or makes things easier on me.  But, George and Emily's purchase makes me sad.  Not that the money went for something practical.  We have all made those decisions, weighing wants and needs.  What makes me sad it that Julia never got to see Paris.  She never saw another country and died with an unfulfilled dream. 

Visiting Ireland didn't start as my dream; it belonged to my daughter.  But, it has infected me.  The landscape, the people, the castles, they have all got under my skin.  However, there is more.  I see vacation photos from those who traveled to other countries.  I listen to speeches in my class from international students who speak of the benefits of traveling abroad.  I heard the words from a dear friend who told me traveling abroad will "change my perspective,"  And I want that.  I want that adventure and that experience.  So, I want to take our legacy, get on a plane, and walk off in a country where they do speak English, although we may not be able to understand it, and change our perspective.
-MW

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