Perfection

1. The pursuit of perfection. It seems that our society strives to be perfect. Our looks always have to be perfect, and at the sight of one little blemish or wrinkle, one always feels the need to correct it. People also strive to make their souls "perfect". For many, this is attempted by being religious, or practicing the latest spiritual fad. Truthfully, I believe that no one can ever be perfect, so what's the point in trying to be? Not saying that you shouldn't be the best person you can be, but just don't be too hard on yourself in situations you can't control. Perfection can never really be attained because when does it even start? How do you know when or if you have reached a level of perfection? Again, I believe the answer to this question is never because there will always be those who tell you you aren't good enough and you need to strive to be more perfect. The pursuit of perfection is a bottomless pit that one can avoid falling into by living the live one is given to the fullest and never looking back or wishing anything was done differently.

2. In Tuesdays With Morrie, Morrie is reminiscing about always striving to be perfect. When you strive for this, nothing you have worked for has any meaning because there will always be the next thing that is more important. Morrie illustrates this idea when he says, "I always wished I had done more with my work; I wished I had written more books. I used to beat myself up over it. Now I see that never did any good. Make peace. You need to make peace with yourself and everyone around you." This is and important concept because Morrie realizes his true goals in life, not the ones that will make him feel more perfect and accomplished. Perfection is also shown in this book when Morrie talks about his "perfect day". To Mitch, this perfect day of walking in nature, dancing, and sleeping seems so bland and boring. Mitch finally gets the point that perfection is reveling in the simple things when he says, "It was so simple. So average. I was actually a little disappointed. I figured he'd fly to Italy or have lunch with the President or romp on the seashore or try ever exotic thing he could think of. After all these months, lying there unable to move a leg or a foot-- how could he find perfection in such an average day? Then I realized this was the whole point." Once Mitch comes to the conclusion that perfection can be so simple to attain, because it just comes when you stop trying to attain it, he is truly inspired.

3. I agree with what these examples are saying and I think that they offer great advice. My favorite piece of advice is that when you stop trying to be perfect, you really achieve this goal because you stop pushing yourself so hard and you can just stop and look around and admire the journey.

4. Finally, my questions for you, the reader, are as follows: What do you think the true definition of perfection is? Do you think humans should stop trying to achieve it and just enjoy the lives they have?

Touch

1. Taste, Sight, Smell, Touch. These are all senses, yet the sense of touch is crucial on a very physical and emotional level. One can be touched on a figurative level by a great quote, speech, song, or idea, yet one can also be touched on the physical level of a held hand, a hug, or a kiss. A caring touch is shown when someone is taking care of you and a life can be touched by a mentor or parent who one has been influenced by. Touch is one of the most important senses because of its ability to work on two different levels. Both of these levels of touch are seen in Tuesdays With Morrie.

2. In this stage of the novel, Morrie has lost all of his motor skills and he relies on others to move and adjust him. He enjoys the touch of others' because it is the only physical interaction that he has in his life anymore. Mitch writes about this and he says, "I had to reach over and adjust it [the microphone] frequently. Morrie seemed to enjoy this because it brought me close to him, in hugging range, and his need for physical affection was strong than ever." This quote demonstrates that Morrie misses his sense of touch and the physical affection he gained from it. He enjoys physical interactions with people because they might be the last he ever has. In addition to Morrie's physical need for touch, this old man has touched more people in a figurative way himself than he knows. When asked if he is afraid that he will be forgotten after he is dead he says, " I don't think I will be. I've got so many people who have been involved with me in close, intimate ways. And love is how you stay alive, even after you are gone." Morrie shows in this quote that he has changed and touched the lives of so many people that he will live on in their hearts even after he has passed.

3. I agree with what these examples are saying because I believe that it is important to touch (in a figurative way) people in your lives so that they will always remember you for what you have taught them. I wish to be like Morrie and do this so my ideas and thoughts will live on in others' hearts.

4. Finally, my question for you, the reader, is as follows: If you wish to touch (figuratively) someone in your life, what would you do to do that? i.e. write a book, teach someone something, be a mentor or an inspiration etc....

Family

1. Family. A group of people gathered around a dinner table saying grace. A father and mother taking a walk with their children in the park. Two brothers playing catch in their yard. This group of people fit together, not always harmoniously, but unified as one. They care about each other, and they are willing to support their family members in the darkest of times. Families are such wonderful things because they are founded on the greatest feeling in the world: love. Love brings people together and helps them spread their love through their children. This emotion that draws families together is a wonderful, yet dangerously powerful thing that can create strong families or ravage and tear some apart. The ideal family is one which supports each other, loves each other, and constantly learns from each others' mistakes. Unfortunately, this world is not always ideal. The perfect family that is often portrayed is not always the case. Unfortunately, some families break apart, drift away, and lose sight of what is important in their relationships. Hopefully, with the love and support from its other members, a family will always find ways to still support each other, despite loss and alienation. This is what is so wonderful about a family. Even through their most challenging times, families can find ways to persevere and come back to the core of what being in a family is all about: love.

2. In Tuesdays With Morrie, Morrie teaches Mitch the important lesson that family is the most important thing in one's life. Morrie says, "The fact is, there is no foundation, no secure ground, upon which people may stand today if it isn't the family... If you don't have the support and love and caring and concern that you get from a family, you don't have much at all. " Morrie has really learned this from experience because without being able to rely on his family, he would not survive because he depends on them for everything. After hearing this, Mitch really thinks about his life, and what is really important in it. All the material things, all the money, all the famous people he's met, that is not what will be there for him in his final hours. He realizes that without a family and all the emotions that come with it, his life is not fulfilled. He writes, "So the TV was the same old model, the car that Charlotte drove was the same model, the dishes and the silverware and the towels-- all the same. And yet the house had changed so drastically. It had filled with love and teaching and communication. It had filled with friendship and family and honesty and tears.... it had become in a very real way, a wealthy home, even though Morrie's bank account was rapidly depleting." This segment shows that Mitch has finally realized that the emotions of compassion, friendship, and the love of a family are the real things that one needs in life. The material items that he has gained can't even begin to measure up to the truest and deepest emotions known to man. The relationships in a family are the most valued relationships with other people that one can have in life.

3. I agree with what these quotes are saying and I definitely believe that one's family is more important that all the things that money and fame can attain. Your family is who will stick with you to the end, not any of your material goods. The material possessions might seems bright and interesting at first, yet there will always be something newer and cooler that ups what you already have. There is no such thing in family. You accept the differences of those around you, love who you have, and hopefully never wish for anything else.

4. Finally, my questions for you, the reader, are as follows: What is your definition of family? What do you think are the deepest bonds and emotions shared within a family?

Trust

1. Trust. Trust is believing in someone or something. Trust is having faith that things will get better. Trust is knowing that someone will be there to catch you when you fall. This feeling or state of being is hard to put into words, yet this is the way that I most commonly think of trust. It is crucial to have trust because if you don't trust others, then how can you even trust yourself? What if you don't have anyone there to support you that you trust? It is important to trust others because you never know when you might need someone's support to get you through. It is better to believe better of people and then have them prove you wrong as opposed to the other way around. What I mean by this statement is that it is better to think all people are good and then have a few exceptions that proves your theory wrong rather that to trust no one and then have someone who helps you despite your distrust of them. Trust can be a difficult thing to muster, yet I believe that you know by your instincts who can be trusted and who can't. Someone once told me that if a person ever has to implore you to "trust me", then they are not to be trusted. If one has to ask for trust, then it is obvious that they have done nothing to earn it. Trust is a thing that comes from experience and it cannot be made in an instant. It takes a lifetime to earn it, and a moment to shatter it.

2. In Tuesday's With Morrie, there are many examples of trust. Morrie has to trust others to take care of him because as his body condition deteriorates, he is unable to take care of himself. He need assistance doing the simplest of tasks and he is very fortunate to have his "small army of home care workers" who aid him. If Morrie did not trust in the people he has around him to help him survive, then he would not last long. Without these people that are willing to be there for him, he would wither away to nothing in a shorter amount of time. Morrie understand the virtue of trust, because of all the people he trusts, yet when he tried to educate a younger generation on its importance, he was met with varied opinions. In his unusual course entitled "Group Process", Morrie uses his students as "human lab rats". He has his students do a trust fall, where they rely on the person behind them to catch them. Most of the students are uncomfortable with this, yet one girl simply closes her eyes and lets herself fall into the arms of another student. Morrie comments on this saying, "You see, you closed your eyes. That was the difference. 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 to--even when you're in the dark. Even when you're falling." This quote is so important because Morrie gives his students the influential lesson that trust must be given to be received.

3. These examples changed my views on trust for the better. Morrie's advice really meant a lot to me and I feel as if I can implement it in my own life. I feel that sometimes I am not willing to give trust out, yet I ask for it readily. It is important to trust others with the same amount of trust that you require them to give you.

4. Finally, my questions for you, the reader, are as follows: What is your definition of trust? Who do you feel that you completely trust in your life?

Friendship

1. Friendship. What is it exactly? A smile or a laugh shared with someone whom you enjoy spending time? Or is it something deeper, something bigger and more profound than all of us? Why does one need friends anyway? Theoretically, we all could exist separately without them. But for some reason, humans feel the need to bond together and create close relationships that can last a lifetime or be broken in a second. Everyone that lives and breathes feels the need for friendship in one way or another because no one wishes to ultimately spend their life alone. This blackness, this silence, and this solitude with no friendship is what everyone fears.

2. In Tuesdays With Morrie, Morrie and Mitch have the deep connection of friendship. From the beginning, when Mitch sits down in Morrie's class, he can tell that this professor is different. He can tell that Morrie is someone who can listen to and understand him. Morrie's first words to Mitch amaze him. Morrie says," Mitchell?... Do you prefer Mitch? Or is Mitchell better?" Mitch then writes, "I had never been asked this by a teacher. I do a double take at this guy in his yellow turtleneck and green corduroy pants. Mitch I, say. Mitch is what my friends call me." Morrie then replies, "Well, Mitch it is then... And Mitch? I hope that someday you will think of me as your friend." This quote demonstrates that Morrie is such a good and real person that he wants to befriend even the students that walk into his class. Morrie really demonstrates the true definition of friendship. No matter who you are or where you come from, you should always be kind to others and you might discover the relationship of a lifetime. This relationship between professor and student did develop into a great relationship and the two spend much time together. Mitch says that he always feels comfortable around Morrie and they get along extraordinarily well. He writes, "We go beyond the classroom, meeting now and then to just talk. I have never done this before with an adult who wasn't a relative, yet I feel comfortable doing it with Morrie, and he feels comfortable making the time." This quote really shows the fact that these two men are truly friends. They understand each other without speaking and they are as comfortable with each other as they are in their own skin. They are true friends because they don't simply look on the surface of their different characters. They look within to see and determine how the other thinks and how they feel about life. Mitch and Morrie are dear friends to each other and they will remain this way even until Morrie's death, which demonstrates that even if there is loss in a friendship, the friendship still continues unwaveringly.

3. I agree with the ideas that these quotations are demonstrating because they are the core of friendship. Looking beyond the surface, being a loyal companion to someone even though there is no hope for them, and simply being there for someone in their time of need are all part of friendship. Mitch and Morrie demonstrate these ideas on a student to teacher basis and later on in life when they have both grown into different people. I think that this is wonderful that they were able to have such a strong relationship in college and then pick right up where they left off many years later. Even though they were once separated, they still found ways back to each other and I believe that this is also one of the most important elements of friendship. No matter the distance or amount of time that separates two people, if they are true friends and companions they will always find a way back to each other in the end.

4. Finally, my question for you, the reader, is as follows: What do you think the true definition of friendship is? Do you have someone that you are close to that fits this description?

Intro

Welcome to Kate's Tuesday's With Morrie blog. Stay tuned for journal entries on the main themes of this book. Thanks for following this blog!