Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom

Title: tuesdays with Morrie
Author: Mitch Albom
ISBN-10: 0307275639
Publisher: Anchor Books/192 pages


The book is about Morrie Schwartz, a history professor at Brandeis University, who has been diagnosed with ALS and is dying. A former student, Mitch Albom, who had become a fairly well known sports writer, hears about his teacher from an interview in ‘Nightline’ and decides to pay a visit. This visit soon turns into regular meetings - on Tuesdays. Albom chronicles Morrie's declining health, but at the same time imparts Morrie's wisdom. Morrie is expressive and is dignified to the end. It takes the wisdom of a dying man to make us realize that human relationships and health are more important than anything else is.

Tuesdays spent with Morrie are filled with simple platitudes. He lives his life well though he is dying. Morrie does not dwell on the dying aspect. He has a wonderful support system. His family consists of his wife and friends. He shows his love and gratitude to them everyday. Morrie does not speak out new words of wisdom. He talks about living one’s life with simplicity and connecting with those one loves. Words we should all live by, but in our busy worlds, we tend to forget.

Morrie teaches Mitch the values of life, the world, regrets, emotions, aging, money, love, culture, forgiveness, and most important of all, death. In each chapter, as Morrie grows weaker, faster and faster, the author finds a new way to jerk tears out of ones eyes, with simple descriptions that make one choke.

When Morrie chooses to be buried under an oak tree, asks Mitch "You'll come and visit me, right? Every Tuesday, and this time, you can do the talking, and I'll do the listening."