illustration of author Mitch Albom sitting next to Morrie Schwartz, who is lying in a bed

Tuesdays With Morrie

by Mitch Albom

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Why do people read Tuesdays With Morrie?

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Many people read Tuesdays With Morrie because of the perspective of its author. Mitch Albom is a former student of Morrie Schwartz, who realizes that he is dying. Mitch records the life lessons that Morrie wants to share, and these lessons are particularly valuable because Morrie is a widely respected man who has constructed many meaningful relationships with his family and community.

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Many people read Tuesdays With Morrie because of the perspective of its author. Morrie Schwartz is a former professor with incredible gifts, including compassion and encouragement; these gifts are heightened even further because Morrie realizes he is dying. Mitch, his former student, visits with Morrie over numerous weeks in order to record Morrie's final truths about living and dying.

Because he has been so widely respected in life for the way he has treated people, Morrie's insights about life's lessons are particularly poignant. Readers are allowed the gift of insight into how to live life with a greater sense of purpose and fulfillment. Morrie has cultivated intimate and positive relationships with his family and community, and Albom's book allows readers the gift of his hopeful vision.

Since Morrie realizes he is dying, he is able to look back upon life with a greater sense of clarity, deeply appreciating those things...

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which have brought meaning and value to his existence. He is also able to speak to regrets and loss, instructing others how to avoid making some of the same mistakes.

People read Tuesdays With Morrie because it provides valuable wisdom. As people search for their own purpose in life and struggle to meaningfully connect with others, Morrie's words provide valuable instruction to achieving a meaningful life.

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Why is the book titled Tuesdays With Morrie?

Interestingly, Morrie and Mitch's lives have always managed to intersect on Tuesdays. Most of Morrie's classes that Mitch took were scheduled on Tuesdays. Morrie scheduled office hours on Tuesdays, so he and Mitch often met during that time. And when Mitch wrote his senior thesis, he and Morrie met on Tuesdays to review and discuss his work.

When Mitch learns that Morrie is dying, he decides to visit his former instructor and mentor. He arrives on a Tuesday, which Morrie believes is fitting. "We're Tuesday people," he points out.

Because Tuesdays have always been significant in their relationship, Mitch continues to plan his visits for Tuesdays. Over numerous Tuesdays, Mitch listens to and records Morrie's lessons about living and dying. Mitch enjoys these visits tremendously, which in itself is a testament to the power of the messages that Morrie delivers weekly; after all, Morrie's body is failing as he faces an increasingly imminent death. Additionally, Mitch must fly seven hundred miles to see Morrie in person.

These Tuesdays spent with Morrie are transformational for Mitch. He begins to view the time as a cleansing ritual for his soul as he is able to focus on important topics like compassion and kindness, qualities his beloved mentor embodies and instructs on. He later compiles all he learns from these Tuesdays, the conversations with Morrie inspiring the basis of Mitch's memoir.

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