Imagine counting your breaths to figure out how much life you have left in you. A healthy adult can exhale while counting to about 70. A dying man may not be able to get much past 15. That is one of the many things Mitch Albom learned on his Tuesday visits with his former professor Morrie, who had been diagnosed with ALS.
I've watched and accompanied others over the years as they've made a similar journey with those dying from disease. Tuesdays with Morrie was the book that helped me gain perspective and shaped my empathy in that journey with them -- both those who experience their loved one's dying, and those who are dying.
Tuesdays with Morrie gives a glimpse into that world. Morrie shares with Albom that "ALS is like a lit candle: it melts your nerves and leaves your body a pile of wax". Throughout the book, Morrie shares many valuable insights. One of his philosophies is, "Accept what you are able to do and what you are not able to do. Accept the past as past, without denying it or discarding it". Morrie admits to crying about his situation, but only allowing himself a few moments each day to lament. Then he turned his attention to the people and activities he loved most, often giving comfort to those who visited him rather than receiving it.
People may still stay away from sharing this book -- especially with our young. On the surface it seems to be only about death. But it's truly about living. Morrie says, "Dying is only one thing to be sad over, Mitch. Living unhappily is something else". The question of Morrie's that sticks with me the most is, "Are you trying to be as human as you can be?"
Sometimes it feels easier, and safer, to be quick with our words and reserved with our kindness. Tuesdays with Morrie reminds us -- even after 20 years -- to slow down and appreciate each other. Morrie cautions that at the end of our lives, we will miss our relationships with people the most. They will matter much more than the things that seem so important to us. People are always worthy of our time and energy.
In that way, Tuesdays with Morrie is the best lesson an old teacher can teach: How to live.
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I received a free copy of this book as part of the Blogging for Books program in exchange for my honest review here.