Since Saturday, every news outlet and social media feed has made note of John McCain’s death followed by an extensive commentary on his life.  Whether or not you liked him as a person or agreed with his politics or methods, two things (and probably many others that won’t be addressed here) have become fairly obvious through it all.  First, John McCain was a person who influenced our country and our world, and in several areas that influence will continue from beyond the grave.

If we think about it honestly, to some degree that statement is true of everyone who passes through this life.  We may not influence an entire country and certainly not the world at large, but we most assuredly influence our world—the people with whom we come in contact, even on a limited basis.  Our actions, for good or ill, have the power to change what is to come.  Think about the movie Back to the Future.  When Marty McFly climbed into the DeLorean to travel back in time, Doc Brown warned him not to interfere in situations there.  Doing so would disrupt “the space-time continuum”.  Yes, that really is a thing—and Doc had a valid point.  If you could go back into the past and change it, you would automatically alter every event from that point forward.  If that holds true for time travel (. . . if we actually had time travel . . .), don’t you think it holds true for the present?  Our choices today determine tomorrow, and usually not just for ourselves.

The second thing we might take away from the John McCain coverage is the importance of remembering and funeral rites and rituals when it comes to honoring a life.  Make-shift memorials have sprouted at his office in Phoenix, Arizona, on Capitol Hill—even as far away as Vietnam, on the banks of the lake from which he was pulled after his plane was shot down during the war.  There will be visitations to accommodate the people of Arizona and Washington, and services which will offer his family their private time to say good-bye and his friends and political cohorts a more public venue.  One could assume that all of this is necessary because of his reputation and decades-long involvement in politics, and to some extent that may be true.  But again, almost everyone has lived a life that someone would want to honor.  Please note, I said almost.  There are always those who, by virtue of their actions and choices, make it difficult to find something honorable, but for most of us, we’ve had our moments, even if they are few and far between.

Honor after death doesn’t just belong to the famous or the wealthy or the highly influential.  It can and should be bestowed upon everyone who used their powers for good in this life.  That good may be far-reaching, touching the lives of countless thousands, or it may simply be improving the lives of those closest to us.  The catch is, we never know which will bear the most fruit, for our legacy, even though it may be limited, may influence someone who will truly change the world.

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