When I first started dating my husband, I did what any early 2000s teen would do: logged onto Facebook and read every single post that he’d ever had.

Remember how people used to post on each other’s walls? Just the most random things? Well, I discovered that a mutual friend had recently shared to his wall: “You are a 17th Century Poet.”

I have rarely known Ben to write poetry–the exception being a sweet poem he wrote me early in our marriage, which I kept by my bedside table until our dog ate it out of revenge for being shut in the bedroom while we had guests.

And I was pretty sure he was born in the 1990s, so I wasn’t sure what that comment meant.

Then, one day as I was killing time in our university’s library, I discovered a book written by a poet from the 1600s named Ben Jonson! He was a contemporary of Shakespeare. In fact, he wrote a touching poem upon Shakespeare’s death, which basically said that the Bard’s writing wasn’t that great (While I confess thy writings to be such/ That neither man nor muse can praise too much) but had lots of nice things to communicate on other topics.

Aside from agreeing that Shakespeare’s works are a bit overhyped–Romeo and Juliet. Just why?–I found some of Jonson’s comments thought-provoking. He refers to the playwright as a “monument without a tomb,” a commentary on Shakespeare’s legacy that has proved true for over 400 years.

Can you imagine creating something that people will still discuss and study and cry over and love in 2425?

The truth is, you will.

You may not be a 17th-century poet (the Ben Johnsons of the world excepted, perhaps), but you create a legacy every day with the actions you take. Maybe we consider this as we raise a child, publish something, vote. But you have the “butterfly effect” with everything you do. Even the smallest kindness can change the course of someone’s afternoon. Give them hope. Draw them from the brink of despair. Maybe even direct their trajectory.

Every day is sacred, and each moment we write a piece of history in our vast, interconnected world. Going into 2025, I want to be live with the mindset of a “monument without a tomb.” Will you join me?