Just finished reading “Tuesdays with Morrie” and wanted to share some nuggets of wisdom…
Dying is only one thing to be sad over. Living unhappily is something else.
A tension of opposites: Life is a series of pulls back and forth. 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.
So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they’re busy doing things they think are important. This is because they’re chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.
Love is the only rational act.
Sometimes you cannot believe what you see, you have to believe what you feel. And if you are ever going to have other people trust you, you must feel that you can trust them, too – even when you’re in the dark. Even when you’re falling.
On death: Every day, have a little bird on your shoulder that asks, ‘Is today the day? Am I ready? Am I doing all I need to do? Am I being the person whom I want to be? … Once you learn how to die, you learn how to live… If you really listen to that bird on your shoulder, if you accept that you can die at any time – then you might not be as ambitious as you are. The things that you spend so much time on – all this work you do – might not seem as important. You might have to make room for some more spiritual things.
Without love, we are birds with broken wings.
On aging: I embrace aging… As you grow, you learn more… Aging is not just about decay, you know. It’s growth. It’s more than the negative that you’re going to die, it’s also the positive that you understand that you’re going to die, and that you live a better life because of it… if you’ve found meaning in your life, you don’t want to go back. You want to go forward. You want to see more, do more. You can’t wait until sixty-five… If you’re always battling against getting older, you’re always going to be unhappy, because it will happen anyhow… Think of all that I can be! I am every age, up to my own… How can I be envious of where you are – when I’ve been there myself?
On money: These were people so hungry for love that they were accepting substitutes. They were embracing material things and expecting a sort of hug back. But it never works. You can’t substitute material things for love or for gentleness or for tenderness of for a sense of comradeship… If you’re trying to show off for people at the top, forget it. They will look down at you anyhow. And if you’re trying to show off for people at the bottom, forget it. They will only envy you. Status will get you nowhere. Only an open heart will allow you to float equally between everyone.
Mahatma Gandhi: Each night, when I go to sleep, I die. And the next morning, when I wake up, I am reborn.
On marriage: If you don’t respect the other person, you’re gonna have a lot of trouble. If you don’t know how to compromise, you’re gonna have a lot of trouble. If you can’t talk openly about what goes on between you, you’re gonna have a lot of trouble. And if you don’t have a common set of values in life, you’re gonna have a lot of trouble.
People are only mean when they’re threatened.
The problem is that we don’t believe we are as much alike as we are. Whites and blacks, Catholics and Protestants, men and women. If we saw each other as more alike, we might be very eager to join in one big human family in this world, and to care about that family the way we care about our own… We all have the same beginning – birth – and we all have the same end – death. So how different can we be?
In the beginning of life, when we are infants, we need others to survive, right? And at the end of life, when you get like me, you need others to survive, right? … But here’s the secret: in between, we need others as well.
What’s wrong with being number two?
Don’t let go too soon, but don’t hang on too long.
It’s not just other people we need to forgive. We also need to forgive ourselves.
Death ends a life, not a relationship.
任何人读了这本书，都会爱上Morrie。我想，他成功了，成功地在每个人心里种下爱的种子。
Dying is only one thing to be sad over. Living unhappily is something else.
A tension of opposites: Life is a series of pulls back and forth. 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.
So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they’re busy doing things they think are important. This is because they’re chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.
Love is the only rational act.
Sometimes you cannot believe what you see, you have to believe what you feel. And if you are ever going to have other people trust you, you must feel that you can trust them, too – even when you’re in the dark. Even when you’re falling.
On death: Every day, have a little bird on your shoulder that asks, ‘Is today the day? Am I ready? Am I doing all I need to do? Am I being the person whom I want to be? … Once you learn how to die, you learn how to live… If you really listen to that bird on your shoulder, if you accept that you can die at any time – then you might not be as ambitious as you are. The things that you spend so much time on – all this work you do – might not seem as important. You might have to make room for some more spiritual things.
Without love, we are birds with broken wings.
On aging: I embrace aging… As you grow, you learn more… Aging is not just about decay, you know. It’s growth. It’s more than the negative that you’re going to die, it’s also the positive that you understand that you’re going to die, and that you live a better life because of it… if you’ve found meaning in your life, you don’t want to go back. You want to go forward. You want to see more, do more. You can’t wait until sixty-five… If you’re always battling against getting older, you’re always going to be unhappy, because it will happen anyhow… Think of all that I can be! I am every age, up to my own… How can I be envious of where you are – when I’ve been there myself?
On money: These were people so hungry for love that they were accepting substitutes. They were embracing material things and expecting a sort of hug back. But it never works. You can’t substitute material things for love or for gentleness or for tenderness of for a sense of comradeship… If you’re trying to show off for people at the top, forget it. They will look down at you anyhow. And if you’re trying to show off for people at the bottom, forget it. They will only envy you. Status will get you nowhere. Only an open heart will allow you to float equally between everyone.
Mahatma Gandhi: Each night, when I go to sleep, I die. And the next morning, when I wake up, I am reborn.
On marriage: If you don’t respect the other person, you’re gonna have a lot of trouble. If you don’t know how to compromise, you’re gonna have a lot of trouble. If you can’t talk openly about what goes on between you, you’re gonna have a lot of trouble. And if you don’t have a common set of values in life, you’re gonna have a lot of trouble.
People are only mean when they’re threatened.
The problem is that we don’t believe we are as much alike as we are. Whites and blacks, Catholics and Protestants, men and women. If we saw each other as more alike, we might be very eager to join in one big human family in this world, and to care about that family the way we care about our own… We all have the same beginning – birth – and we all have the same end – death. So how different can we be?
In the beginning of life, when we are infants, we need others to survive, right? And at the end of life, when you get like me, you need others to survive, right? … But here’s the secret: in between, we need others as well.
What’s wrong with being number two?
Don’t let go too soon, but don’t hang on too long.
It’s not just other people we need to forgive. We also need to forgive ourselves.
Death ends a life, not a relationship.
任何人读了这本书，都会爱上Morrie。我想，他成功了，成功地在每个人心里种下爱的种子。
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