Tuesdays With Morrie
BY: Mitch Albom
The Curriculum
last class of his old professor’s life took place once a week in his house — class met on Tuesday and the subject was the meaning of life, taught from experience
he was the only student
Morrie Schwartz was his favourite professor
The Syllabus
Morrie would always go out dancing, but after years of it he started to develop asthma, then fell a couple of times. He knew it wasn’t old age
multiple tests and he was diagnosed with ALS
Morrie and wife Charlotte didn’t know what to do after the news
started having troubles with daily tasks and decided to teach his course he’s been teaching for 20 years again and let the students know
asked him “do I wither up and disappear, or do I make the best of my time left?”
he decides to make his death his final project
Morrie created a living funeral where people came to speak and pay tribute to him
The Student
Mitch did not keep in touch with Morrie, he wanted to be a famous musician but found himself failing for the first time in his life
his favourite uncle died of pancreatic cancer, he was the person Mitch looked up to
after his death Mitch’s life changed, went back to school and became a journalist and got a job after in pro sports
worked at many places and met a girl and made money, didn’t think about Morrie too much until something on tv came up
The Audiovisual
learn to forgive yourself and to forgive others — don’t assume that it’s too late to get involved
some of the quotes Mitch jotted down that got out to the newspaper and now reporters want to create a story
does the interview and some days are sad but wakes up and says ‘I want to live’
The Orientation
Mitch drove out to see Morrie, but had a bunch of work. Was not proud of the moment as he kept working when he pulled into Morris’s driveway
goes inside to talk about his death
The Classroom
Morrie says he’s more interesting to people now as he’s like a bridge — not as alive as he use to be nor dead
Mitch starts to think back on his own life — traded a lot of his dreams for a bigger pay check
Morrie asks: ‘have you found someone to share your heart with?’ ‘Are you giving to your community?’ ‘Are you at peace with yourself?’ ‘Are you trying to be as human as you can be?’
Mitch didn’t know how to answer and felt almost embarrassed
Taking Attendance
Mitch went to London a few weeks later and all he could think about was his interaction with Morrie
The culture we have does not make people feel good about themselves and we have to be strong enough to say if the culture doesn’t work, don’t buy it
the way to get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, to your community around you, to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning
Mitch went back home after covering Wimbledon and union went on strike, he was out of a job
decides to visit Morrie on Tuesday
to be fully human
The First Tuesday We Talk About The World
ultimate sign of dependency is wiping own bum, Morrie trying to enjoy the process as he get to be a baby one more time
Morrie feels more connected with others suffering in the news and cries often
he learns that the most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in
they are Tuesday people and will meet again next Tuesday
The Second Tuesday We Talk About Feeling Sorry For Yourself
Mitch liked himself better with Morrie as it feels like a time warp even with the newspaper strike
Mitch helped Morrie from the wheelchair to the recliner and literally felt dead weight and realized that time was running out
“sometimes you cannot believe what you see, you have to believe what you feel. And if you ever going to have other trust you, you must feel that you can trust them”
The Third Tuesday We Talk About Regrets
Mitch brought a tape recorder for their conversations and realized he wanted to remember it for as long as he could
what if today was my last day on earth?
the culture doesn’t encourage you to think about such things until you’re about to die
we’re so wrapped up with egotistical things, career, family, money, mortgage, new car etc, we’re involved in so many little acts just to keep going
The Audiovisual, Part 2
Koppel the interviewer comes in to Morrie’s place for second interview and can tell the difference in Morrie as he’s unable to speak with his hands of gestures
as the interview was wrapping up, Morrie shared a letter that sent to him after viewing the first interview. It was from a school teacher that took care of children that lost a parent at an early age and Morrie stated that he was moved as he lost his mother at an early age
The Professor
Morrie’s mother passed away when he was young and his father didn’t know much English either. Brother got polio soon after and he felt everything was going downhill
then stepmother came into his life and she really helped their family
Morrie tries working at the fur company with his father but didn’t work out so decided he was going to teach as he enjoyed school
The Fourth Tuesday We Talk About Death
everyone knows they’re going to die, but nobody believes it
the approach of knowing we are going to die and being prepared for it at any time. That way we can actually be more involved in life while living
once you learn how to die, you learn how to live
why is it so hard to think about dying? Most of us really don’t experience the world fully, we do things automatically that we think we have to do
The Fifth Tuesday We Talk About Family
without love, we are birds with broken wings
Mitch and Morrie talk about if he didn’t have children or a family would the emptiness be unbearable at this time
Morrie didn’t want his two sons to stop their lives to be with him as it would ruin their lives too
there is no other experience like having children, it’s the complete responsibility of another human being
Mitch now talks about his family and his younger brother had cancer similar to their uncle — he fought it with many treatments around Europe but wanted to do it alone
The Sixth Tuesday We Talk About Emotions
Mitch arrived but was greet by Charlotte, Morrie’s wife and she told him that Morrie hasn’t been doing too well
Morrie talks about detaching himself from the moment of coughs — don’t cling on to things, because everything is impermanent
detachment doesn’t mean you don’t let the experience penetrate you, let it penetrate you fully cause that’s how you leave it — if not then you’re afraid
Morrie explains to Mitch after a lot of coughing that he wants to die serenely not like what just happened with the coughing
The Professor, Part 2
Morrie worked at a mental aid hospital for 5 years and learned that people want to feel like they mattered
Morrie did things a bit different when teaching as he focused on self development
The Seventh Tuesday We Talk About The Fear of Aging
on this Tuesday, Morrie lost his battle as now someone is wiping his behind and merely dependent on others for everything
as you grow older you learn more — it’s growth. The positive is that you understand that you are going to die
when lives haven’t found meaning you hear ‘oh, if I were young again’ — if you found meaning to life you don’t want to go backwards
age is not a competitive issue
The Eighth Tuesday We Talk About Money
we put our values in the wrong things and we feel it’s difficult to change that
you can’t take material things with you when you die
when others look for the new materials they got and tell people, Mitch sees it as we’re so hungry for love that they were accepting substitutes
there’s a confusion in this country over what we want vs what we need
offering others what you have to give — time, attention, concern, skill, love
if you are trying to show off for people, forget it. They will look down at you anyhow
only a open heart will allow you to float
The Ninth Tuesday We Talk About How Love Goes On
Mitch attempts again to call his brother in Spain, he gets back to Mitch but told him he didn’t want to talk about the cancer
Morrie thinks about a question ‘if I worried about being forgotten after I died’
his answer: love is for you to stay alive, even after you are gone
being present in the moment with yourself and others
everyone is always in a hurry, bit if you start running it’s hard to slow down
The Tenth Tuesday We Talk About Marriage
Morrie not doing so well, Mitch can sense this and wants him to meet his wife, Janine
Morrie asks Janine to sing as he knew she was a great singer, Mitch expected her to decline as she normally does but she starts
in today’s culture we either too selfish to take part of a real loving relationship or rush into marriage
the belief in the importance of your marriage must be shared between the two is the biggest value
The Eleventh Tuesday We Talk About Our Culture
Morrie believed in the inherent good of people. But also saw what they could become
build your own sub culture — how we think, what we value
every society has its own problems, you have to create your own culture
when we are an infant we need others, when you get old we still need others, in between guess what we need others as well
The Audiovisual, Part Three
final interview and now Koppel had became friends with Morrie — to Morrie living means he can be responsive to the other person, show emotions and his feelings, talk to them, feel them
don’t let go too soon, but don’t hang on too long
be compassionate, take responsibility for each other — love each other or die
The Twelfth Tuesday We Talk About Forgiveness
forgive yourself before you die. Then forgive others
Morrie tells a story about a friend named Norman where they spent some time together doing great things but when he and his wife moved to Chicago he didn’t really keep in touch. Charlotte needed an operation and Norman didn’t reach out
Morrie didn’t let that go as Norman tried to reach out a few times — Morrie realized that Norman passed away with cancer
need to make peace with yourself and others
The Thirteenth Tuesday We Talk About the Perfect Day
Morrie wanted to be cremated, why are we so afraid of the sight of death — when someone in the hospital dies they pull the sheets over their face and wheel out — it’s not contagious it’s part of life
acceptance and being at peace
if you know in the end that we can ultimately have that peace with dying, then we can finally do the hard thing — make peace with living
as long as we can love each other, and remember the feeling of love we had, we can die without ever really going away
death ends a life, not a relationship
The Fourteenth Tuesday We Say Goodbye
Charlotte calls Mitch and tells him Morrie is not doing well and he’s very weak
Mitch meets with Morrie and he doesn’t know how to say goodbye so he takes Mitch’s hand and puts it on his heart
Graduation
Morrie died on the Saturday, family around him
fallen into a coma for 2 days and just as the family went to get coffee in the kitchen, he passed.
Mitch believed that he knew when he wanted to go serenely with no family witnessing his last breath
Conclusions
there’s no such thing as ‘too late’ in this life
the teachings goes on