Tuesdays with Morrie is a true-life narrative about Mitch Albom and his friendship with his adviser and professor, Morrie Schwartz, in the last few months before passing away. The description that Albom gives about Morrie’s incredible ideas and fight for continued existence has motivated many readers. Besides being a professor, Morrie had remarkable skills in writing and motivational speaking before his health deteriorated and deterred him from proceeding with his passion. Albom’s narration is full of vital lessons that one can learn in his or her life.
Mitch Albom discovered that his professor had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). From then, Albom was by Morrie’s side each Tuesday for six months. He spent each of these days learning important lessons that he could get nowhere else.
Albom had developed the tradition of visiting Morrie with the hope of getting support on his thesis paper. He went back to Morrie with the same anticipation but ended up getting essential skills from Morrie’s deathbed. As a community, we are supposed to visit the old and the sick, not as a show of pity, but as a golden chance to learn from their past rich experiences. Those who have been privileged to reach this state ought to be enthusiastic to pass their knowledge to the upcoming philosophers.
Despite the constant changes in humankind, life has to go on. In this situation, a major conversion of self is only possible when one perceives that death is inevitable. People who have experienced the reality of death are capable of fully comprehending the significance of life in this world. Morrie always said, “Learn how to die, and you will learn how to live” (83). The certainty of the mystery of this life is properly fathomed in one realizing that this life is short-lived.
Morrie told Albom that “… when you most need it, neither money nor power will give you the feeling you’re looking for…” (125). This is one of the key concepts that has influenced my life while reading this book. Neither money nor power is capable of making one happy in this life. Many of us spend our whole lives desperately hunting for peace of mind, material needs, or unfulfilled love relationships. Morrie teaches us to be contented with whatever we have and live within our means.
“He smiled,…because if you’ve found meaning in your life…you want to go forward…you’re always battling against getting older…it will happen anyhow.” (118). Here Morrie is advising his long time student to live his life to the fullest. These words, as expressed by him, make more sense to me than if they were to be expressed by my father. At his deathbed, Morrie critically reflects on his experiences in life, he encourages me to develop a trust for his enlightened advice.
Morrie teaches Albom about the notion that his culture depicts and the way none of us should deem as appropriate what the culture entails. “It’s the same for women not being thin… It is just what our culture would have you believe. Don’t believe it” (155).
Regardless of his deteriorating health, Morrie did not give up lecturing Albom. If we could emulate Morrie in suffering long for the good of others, our world would now be a more pleasant place to live in. Tuesday’s with Morrie is a lesson for us all that illustrates the beauty of living a life well.
Work Cited
Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie. New York : Random House, 1997. Print.