TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE

I've been thinking about a guy I worked with 40 years ago at York Corporation, now Johnson Controls. His name was George Phillips and he was a kind of mentor to me, both on and off the job.

I recall George bringing tons of snacks every time we hunted together near Forge Hill Orchards in Manchester, PA. I told him if I spent the money he spends on snacks, there wouldn't be any money left for real food. I have never forgotten his "bigger picture" response. "If you learn to be smart about carefully negotiating every large purchase, there will be plenty of money left for small purchases." 

George understood me when I was young and helped me see the world as an opportunity, assuming I was willing to work hard and choose to be positive. Over the years I lost track of him, so last week I did a search to see if he was still living. Turns out he died 15 years ago, but I found a telephone number and had a nice conversation with his wife, who now lives in Halifax. I wish I would have stayed in touch.

This got me to thinking about the book "Tuesday's With Morrie", maybe because today is Tuesday or maybe because George was a mentor like the retired teacher in the book. About two years ago I posted some thoughts:

Recently our grandson borrowed "Tuesday's With Morrie" from me to do a school report. The story is about a retired teacher named Morrie Schwartz who is slowly dying of Lou Gherig's disease. Instead of being miserable about his inevitable death, Morrie has accepted it. An old pupil of his, Mitch Albom, visits Morrie after hearing of his sickness on the news. Morrie starts to teach Mitch about his ideas on the meaning of life.  Here are some quotes:

"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."

“I like myself better when I'm with you.”  

“there are a few rules I know to be true about love and 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. Your values must be alike.'

“I give myself a good cry if I need it, but then I concentrate on all good things still in my life. I don't allow myself any more self-pity than that. A little each every morning, a few tears, and that's all. ”  

“This is part of what a family is about, not just love. It's knowing that your family will be there watching out for you. Nothing else will give you that. Not money. Not fame. Not work.”  

A movie based on the book was released in 1999.