Book: Tuesdays with Morrie

As soon as I started reading Tuesdays With Morrie I was hooked. It is a book about an old man’s reflections on life. I have noticed that older people don’t seem to judge as much as kids my age, and I like that they give advice based on their experience. I loved this book. Morrie doesn’t hold on to the past much, because he’s all about forgiveness and loving those who surround him.

The book is a true story, and the author, Mitch Albom, starts the story in the spring of 1979, when he is a college student at Brandeis University. He has a favorite professor named Morrie Schwartz who teaches a social psychology course. Morrie becomes Mitch’s mentor, that one person in life you have endless admiration for and turn to for knowledge and advice. At Mitch’s graduation he introduces Morrie to his parents. “You have a very special boy here,” says Morrie. Mitch promises he’ll stay in touch, but doesn’t.

Fifteen years later Morrie is stricken with an incurable illness called Lou Gehrig’s disease. Mitch had settled in Detroit and become a successful sports journalist. Although he made a lot of money and has a lot of material things, he was not happy.

Dying is only one thing to be sad over, living unhappily is something else.

Sixteen years ago on the day of graduation Mitch Albom had promised his favorite professor Morrie to keep in touch with him. But like most of the other students he too fails to keep up with his promise and gets busy in making a career that can pay him a lot of money and buy all the luxuries. But who knew that after sixteen years while flipping through channels Mitch will again see his long lost professor, now in his late 70’s on TV on America’s biggest interview show.

That day his journey of life’s truest and greatest lessons begins. At that time Mitch doesn’t know about an incurable disease growing inside his professor’s body until he comes across the channel showing Morrie. Now though work is always his top priority in life, he decides to take some time out and meet his old professor.

When both meet, Morrie still remembers his favorite student and opens his arms cheerfully to get hugged like a baby. Mitch who has become what our culture expects us to be, a “grown up”, feels a pang of guilt and decides to meet his coach every Tuesday as long as Morrie can make it to live.

Surprisingly Tuesdays are now what Mitch looks forward to and not his work. Morrie shares his experience of life, love, family, money as well as death, some of them we all are afraid to even think of, beautifully and what all these should truly mean to a person, reflecting a life lived to it’s fullest by the old man.

I feel fortunate to have come across this book at an early age. This is not just a story of a dying old man but a treasure of life’s greatest lessons and wisdom that no personal mastery can teach us but experience.