A Doppelgänger

“Many people say, “Who’s my doppelgänger?” when maybe they should ask, “Whose doppelgänger am I?” Carson Cistulli [an American poet, essayist]

A doppelgänger is defined as being the double of a living person. It seems that I have, or rather had, one. Just lately I had the experience of meeting after 60+ years, someone from the village where I grew up. Now this wasn't just anyone, this person was a cousin of one of my best friends and as such I have heard her name over the years as my friend recounted the news of her extended family.

She remembers me vividly as someone who, along with her cousin, walked her to school daily when she was in Grade one thereby protecting her from the snowballs being thrown at her, but more importantly, she watched my feet for that whole 10 months, envying me because I was so graceful - due she was sure to the ballet lessons I was able to take! Now I would never tell her, but I have absolutely NO memory of walking her to school. Indeed the first memory I have of her is from years later when she had moved to the other side of the village. It might as well be a doppelgänger of mine that she is remembering!

What did strike me from this encounter is how totally unaware we are of the effect we might be having on someone else, someone who really didn’t even penetrate our consciousness at the time. Never mind our family, our friends, our co-workers. What about all the other people that pass in and out of our lives in a day? How do they perceive us? What memories of us do they have? Those memories, whatever they might be, are as much a part of our legacy to this world as any other.

This experience of mine has taken my understanding of the quote from Jane Goodall, “You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” a step farther. How I act in my daily interactions with friends, family, enemies, chance acquaintances, isn't enough. I really need to be present in every minute, in every interaction however small, because those moments might be just the moments of my life that are remember for bad or for good - my legacy to this planet.

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