This is a sorrowful time, as we feel the loss of those who built the Society, who birthed Kingdoms, who can be said without hyperbole to be legendary. As I read the remembrances of others, I find some common threads among the tales of those giants who have walked among us.
For all that it seems that we lionize prowess, it is, in the end, the sacrifices of service that are remembered, and that have the greatest effect on the most people. They sacrifice time and energy to teach others, to lead and inspire, to be where they must be and do what they must do. They sacrifice the freedom to act as they will so that they can be examples to others.
It was said to me once by some wise people that there is a point in everyone’s journey in the Society where one transitions from experiencing the magic to making the magic happen. It can be a hard transition, and the more one sees behind the curtain the more opportunities there are for disillusionment. It is important, I think, to help others traverse this time by teaching them the love of service that makes it possible for all of us to stay and thrive.
For those who are only taking the first steps on this journey (and even those who have many steps behind them already), take note also that these legends were no different than you or I when they began. They all had faults and weaknesses, struggles and failures. There is no inherent gift that separates us, nothing that stands in the way of us following their footsteps and filling their shoes. Indeed, it falls to all of us to find the paths they blazed and become the legends that those who follow us can look up to.
I share the sadness caused by the losses of these great people, but I am heartened by the fact that we, as a Society, are a place where such people can be found, in a world where greatness is often hard to come by.