A good book relaxes me, and this one had served its purpose. I have more copies of paperbacks pile in a shelf, yet the past few days had restricted me from reading any of them. Research works, assignments, exams and a lot more stuff have pre-occupied my mind. I didn’t even get time to unwind. But this Sunday is very different because of “Tuesdays with Morrie” by Mitch Albom.
I was busy doing the laundry when my cousin asked for my help for a reaction paper about this book. I handed her an old issue of the Lathe Journal for it has an article about that. Curious about the whole story, I borrowed her pocket book. When I’m through with the household chores, my passion for reading burnt inside. I started to flip the pages of the book- no fast paced actions, no suspense, no twists and turns, no puzzles…all were life’s lesson. My typical self would prefer another good book, maybe sci-fi, fantasy or thriller; but there’s something here which glued my palm to its cover. The next thing I knew was that I finished the book that very same day and I learned a lot of things from it. Things that were already happening to me but it was only know that I deeply understand and bother to analyze…
LIFE is a series of pulls back and forth, I read. And read more: You want to do one thing but you are bound to do something else. Something hurts you, yet you know it shouldn’t. You take certain things for granted, even when you know you should never take anything for granted. Morrie Schwartz told these things to Mitch, called “tension of opposites”.
The title of the book bears the whole story. You know what keeps me reading? The aphorisms. The lessons. The facts of life. The questions. The answers. Mitch and Morrie shared fourteen Tuesdays- 14 meaningful Tuesday talking about the world, feeling sorry for yourself, regrets, death, family, emotions, fear of aging, money, how love goes on, marriage, culture, forgiveness, perfect day, and goodbye respectively. The student- teacher relationship moved me, for I was a student and there’s a certain “Morrie” in my life. Maybe, this book is a picture of my future. Though promising it still gives pain and fear. The fact that those things have to happen makes me feel sad in one way or another. On the twelfth Tuesday, I found myself straining my eyes from blinking for surely tears will fall (still, they fell). The part when Morrie hold Mitch’s hand as he said this: “If I could have another son, I would have liked it to be you.” touched me. Who in the world will tell those things to me? I’m lucky to have real parents, but hearing those words from others is such a flattery. I may wish for it, but a fiasco will never make a difference. I have heard enough to make me feel fine..My “Morrie” had welcomed me to a brand new life. I wonder: when will she say goodbye? Or will she? Of course time would come – a time to die. But then I learned, death ends a life not a relationship, so whatever happened, we’ll be friends.
Mitch and Morrie had their goodbyes on the fourteenth Tuesday. Morrie died peacefully at Saturday. He was buried on Tuesday. They were Tuesday people.. I would like to tell you, me and my real- life Morrie also meet at Tuesdays. But were not just Tuesday people..we could meet at Thursday or on any other days of the week. We keep in touch, and even if parting time comes, I know saying goodbye will never hurt. I learned how to detach from emotions. This book had taught me. And there’s a message from someone which I treasure very much: In this life, I figure out that saying goodbye is not leaving but is a part of coming back!(+++ I hope that day I’ll be the perfect friend to her and hope she will wait for me as a friend! Just smile!) I agreed. I believed him for I thought that after I said that word it will be over, yet I’m kept attached. Goodbye is just a word, not an act…