When asked in a 1972 interview what he’d like people to think about him when he’s gone, Muhammad Ali gave his “recipe for life” as an answer:

I would like for them to say, he took a few cups of love. He took one tablespoon of patience, one tablespoon of generosity, one pint of kindness; he took one quart of laughter, one piece of concern, and then he mixed willingness with happiness. He added lots of faith, and he stirred it up well. Then he spread it and expanded it over a lifetime. And he served each and every deserving person he met.

Below is another quote, answering “How I would like to be remembered”:

I would like to be remembered as a man who was humorous and who treated everyone right. As a man who never looked down on those who looked above him, and who helped as many people as he could. As a man who stood up for his beliefs no matter what. As a man who tried to unite all humankind through faith and love. If all that’s too much, then I guess I’d settle for being remembered only as a great boxer who became a leader and a champion of his people. I wouldn’t mind if folks forgot how pretty I was.