Pioneering the Oregon Trail Volume XII:

Coal Miner's Daughter

What is your legacy?

Day nine of our trip from Loganville, GA to Seabeck, WA: After a long drive from President Polk's library in Columbia, TN, we finally stopped at Loretta Lynns Kitchen in Buffalo, TN for her buffet. The walls of the café are covered with pictures of Loretta Lynn and her many famous country singing friends of the past and present. We hadn't eaten much all day and had allowed ourselves to get way too hungry. The catfish was fabulous and endless. I ate way too much.

When I asked the checkout lady about available space at Loretta Lynn's nearby Ranch & RV Park she said, "I'm sorry, it's full, we have a convention over there this week. Why don't you stay here in our trucker parking lot for the night? You sure are welcome." We weren't crazy about spending the night next to 18 wheelers. It was late, we were tired, and the manager with her wonderful, warm southern way insisted. I'm not sure how much we slept with the constant running of the trucks' diesel engines; big rigs coming and going, the parking lot's bright night lighting, and the 80º heat. Neither of us slept very much.

Loretta Lynn was smart enough in her heyday to realize that relying on her singing voice and willingness to live a gypsy lifestyle wouldn't last forever. So, she was ready when it was time for her to slow down. She found a way to leverage her fame and name with Loretta Lynn's Country Kitchen, dude ranch, jams, jellies, relishes, and book, A Coal Miner's Daughter. So, the next time you see a story in The Globe or The National Enquirer that says Loretta Lynn is dead don't believe it! She is very much alive at 87 years old and will continue to live after she's gone; through her music, dude ranch, restaurant, jams, jellies, relishes, and A Coal Miner's Daughter.

Here is a question: how are you preparing for tomorrow? What have you done to ensure that you will be remembered? Ensure your legacy will live on when you are gone? What markers are you laying down? What stories are you creating? Who are you training to take your place? What do you want inscribed on your tombstone? What can you do today to create a legend? You will sleep well when you know you have created a legacy for tomorrow.

"If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead, either write something worth reading or do something worth writing." - Benjamin Franklin