If you’ve a massive heart attack, you know that you may not live long. But you dono whether you will die in a month or will you go on for another 5 years.
But there are deceases where doctors give you a date!!
Pancreatic Cancer is one of them.
Randy Pausch was a Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, he was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer on August, 2006 and on August, 2007 he was given a date by his Doctors. He died on July 25, 2008.
He gave a couple of lectures after knowing that he would die soon, one was ‘Last Lecture’ that made him an accidental celebrity! Let’s take some time and try to absorb his Lesson’s Learnt and Philosophies. Ppl say that when a person is dying he will say the truth, the guy who died was a highly qualified Professor and we should definitely have something to learn from his life.
In “Time Management” – Lecture in University of Virginia on November, 27, 2007:
He said (on Doctors giving him a date), “I like the way they say, 'you've 3-6 mnths of good health left’, optimism in the way they say it. Its like going to Disney world and asking, 'When will it close' and they say, 'its open till 8 P.M'”
He noted that if a student comes to his office and asks, “I dono whether I spending $60K for this course was a correct decision?”, then he will just throw the student out of his office, but he says that if the same student comes and asks, “I dono whether I spending my 2 years in this University was a correct decision?”, then he will speak with the student for hours, b’coz that was the right question.
Randy observes that we all have finite time, money can be earned but Time which we spent cannot be brought back. He ends the lecture by saying, “Time is all we've and you may find one day you've less than you think”
In “Last Lecture - Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams” - Carnegie Mellon University – September 18, 2007:
Before speaking, Randy received a long standing ovation from a large crowd of over 400 colleagues and students. When he motioned them to sit down, saying, "Make me earn it," some in the audience shouted back, "You did!"
He knew everybody will be shocked seeing his upbeat mood. He said, “I’m not in self-denial”
He added, “We can't change the cards we're dealt, just how we play the hand”
One of his advice, “you might've to wait for a long time but sometimes even years but ppl will show their good face, just keep on waiting. Nobody is all evil everybody has a good side.”
He believes in enjoying what you do or putting it the other way doing what you enjoy, he said, “Never underestimate the importance of having fun. I'm dying and I'm having fun. And I'm going to keep having fun every day because there's no other way to play it (the game of life)”
On Road blocks (Brick Walls) that stops us from achieving the Goals, he said, “Brick walls let us show our determination, how badly we want it (the goal). They are there to separate us from ppl who do not want to achieve it”
What was very romantic was he saying that yesterday was his wife’s birthday and bringing a cake to the stage and asking his wife to blow the candle!
What shall I say about his wife’s reaction, I can see joy and grief in her face and she was laughing and crying at the same time!!
He ends his session by asking, “Have you figured out the head fake?”
Then he said, “Its not about achieving your childhood dreams it’s about how to lead your life. If you lead your life well the Karma will take care of itself…. the dreams will come to you.”
Convocation Address - Carnegie Mellon University – May 18, 2008:
Randy was in the 9th month after the Doctors gave him the date, so he was living more than expected (3 months extra).
He noted, “We don’t beat the Grim Reaper by living longer. The Reaper will come to all of us. We beat the Reaper by living well and fully.”
He said on regrets when looking at life from his death bed, “it is not the thing we did which we regret in our deathbed it’s the things that we did not.
I've done many stupid things and had many embarrassments but that dint bothers me now.”
He ended his talk by talking about Passion and Love, “you'll need to find your passion, I've learned that you will not find the passion in things and money. When you use things and money as a metric you will always find ppl who've more of them. Passion is something which should come from inside. Whatever the work you do the Passion will be grounded in ppl and what they think of you when your time comes. I had waited for 39 years for my marriage, b’coz it took me that much time to find someone where her happiness is more important than mine. I hope you find that kind of passion and that kind of love“
In Time Magazine Interview:
He was asked whether he thinks that he was a messenger sent to earth for delivering the message of hope.
He said, “Gosh!! I've never really thought about that. I attribute to bad luck (cancer) and nothing else. If I had the choice I give it all back(celebrity status) if I can give cancer along with it. I know that I'm doing the best use of my bad situation but I would not have been in bad situation in first place.”
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R.I.P
Note: Originally written a week after Randy Paush's death
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