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....