tuesdays with morrie

after several months of hearing about this book, i finally had time to read it. it was a highly recommended book. so when i had the chance to read it, i didn't pass on it.

the book was about Morrie, a professor who's dying of ALS, and Mitch, one of his students and the writer of the book. the book told the story of what the Morrie described as their last thesis. morrie and mitch talked about one important part of our life, searching for its meaning, looking for the reason of our existence in this world. mitch taught morrie a lot of things about life which he only realized when he knew he was dying. he passed this on to mitch, who patiently stayed by his side, every tuesday, spending his time in the last days of his professor.

i found the book very enlightening. but at the same time, you feel sadness both from knowing that the person the book talks about is dying, and knowing that what he talked about are facts of our lives that we don't get to think about everyday. every word, every "lesson" given by morrie to mitch, are things we have to keep in mind while we are still living. morrie's "aphorisms" are the answers to our quest for the meaning of our life.

i'm sure everyone who read the book would be moved by morrie's story. you would admire how he faced the remaining days of his life. you'll admire how he faced death. most of us would be too afraid and depressed knowing that you could be taking your last breath anytime. but not morrie. he took his remaining breaths as a way to discover what life is, his purpose of existence. in this way, he overcame the fear of dying and the feeling of loss. he did not let the thought of dying to hinder his mind from recognizing the beauty of life. and the best thing he did is to share his thoughts to mitch, his student and friend.

here are some of the thoughts morrie gave to mitch during their tuesday sessions:
1. the most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in. "Love is the only rational act"
2. once you learn how to die, you learn how to live
3. love each other, or perish
4. learn to detach. allow yourself to dive into your emotions and grief, and when you experience them fully and completely, you'll know what pain is, you'll know what love is, you'll know what grief is. only then can you say that you've experienced that emotion, you recognize that emotion, it's time to detach yourself from that emotion.
5. devote yourself to loving others. devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creatingsomething that gives you meaning and purpose.
6. each night when i go to sleep i die. and the next morning, when i wake up, i am reborn (mahatma gandhi)
7. love is how you stay alive
8. don't let go too soon, but don't hang on too long
9. forgive yourselves before you die, then forgive others.
10. death ends a life, not a relationship
11. you're not a wave, you're part of the ocean