Everything, Always, and Never
When life shows its capability of knocking me down, many different sayings race through my mind to keep me on my feet. In the book The Last Lecture, author Randy Pausch is facing a terminal illness. He is remembered for the extraordinary advice to readers on how to persevere through the bad to achieve success. Just like Randy, a few lessons by which to remember me: “Everything happens for a reason,” “one should always kill them with kindness,” “one should never make a decision when angry.”
Everything Happens For a Reason
First, I am a firm believer in nothing is a coincidence; everything that happens is supposed to. Therefore, everything happens for a reason. This is something I have always been told no matter the
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Yes, I said angry. The three things I listed above all have something in common, and that is when in that state, one is not in their right mind. I do not have a quick temper, but I get frustrated easily. Whenever I am agitated, I have learned to keep my mouth shut; I taught this lesson to myself. Being angry or upset makes me a different person. All I know are my feelings are hurt and I need to get even; therefore, I am not even thinking straight. For example, one time my mom and I got into a heated argument over my sick grandma. My mom kept telling me I did not go see her enough but I was just aggravated because my mom was not understanding my side. It was a Friday night and I was supposed to go spend the night with my bestfriend. As the argument grew, I became more angry and said some things I did not mean. After this, I did not get to follow through with my normal Friday night plans. I very quickly learned things go over much smoother if I take a minute, breathe, relax and then react. Waiting until I am calm to make a decision keeps me away from the consequences of my angry decision making, and I am extremely thankful for
The Last Lecture was written by Randy Pausch as a way to eventually pass on his ideas, story, and beliefs to his young children via video recording after his death due to pancreatic cancer. Pausch hoped to illustrate his life's trajectory coming full circle and to wrap up his academic career as a professor at Carnegie Mellon University.
Sadly, life is a terminal illness, and dying is a natural part of life. Deits pulls no punches as he introduces the topic of grief with the reminder that life’s not fair. This is a concept that most of us come to understand early in life, but when we’re confronted by great loss directly, this lesson is easily forgotten. Deits compassionately acknowledges that grief hurts and that to deny the pain is to postpone the inevitable. He continues that loss and grief can be big or small and that the period of mourning afterward can be an unknowable factor early on. This early assessment of grief reminded me of Prochaska and DiClemente’s stages of change, and how the process of change generally follows a specific path.
“If you can dream—and not make dreams your master, If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim…” Difficulties and Disasters happen quite often, but do not take them seriously because they are not the substance of life, they are the obstacles. “In the fell clutch of circumstance, I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeoning of chance, My head is bloody, but unbowed.” Regardless of the situation, the author is able to tolerate it.
The speech delivered by Dr. Randy Pausch is a powerful and influential public speaking, including various communication components that we should pay attention to and learn when we present our speeches. This lecture is divided into three parts: My childhood dreams, enabling the dreams of others and lessons learned. Dr. Randy Pausch told his audience what he believed and valued with his proper body languages, effective and efficient delivery and interesting and attractive visual aids. From this speech, it can be told that the speaker’s strengths and effectiveness from the lecture, which can reflect my problems as a communicator and a public speaker
While buried, so deep beneath the cavity of adversity, finding hope is nearly impossible. But, it is the ability of decisions that aids as the last gleam of hope retrievable. After facing many struggles, it becomes almost involuntary for someone to put up a guard. With using that strategy, and the transgression of time without progress, there’s a certain ignition of comprehension. Change needs to occur, and a complete remedy of that
Gaines, Ernest J. A Lesson Before Dying. N.p.: Vintage, 1994. Open Library. Web. 10 Feb. 2014.
Randy Pausch was a professor of computer science who did pioneering work in human-computer interaction and virtual reality at Carnegie Mellon University. The Last Lecture which covered a variety of topics was a whimsical and impassioned speech given by Dr. Pausch truly reflecting his courage and leadership. The talk is summarized in the following paragraphs along with comparisons to the Kouzes and Posner Leadership model, and how I can take back these strong life guiding principles and put them to practice in my own life.
Are you someone who believes that everything happens for a reason? While some things happen that do not affect any part of my life, I believe that everything happens for a reason no matter what it is. Everything I do in life has a consequence to it whether it be big or little. If nothing had a reason for happening, what would our purpose of living be.
If anger were a disease, there would be an epidemic in this country. Road Rage, spousal and child abuse, and a lack of civility are just a few examples. Emotionally mature people know how to control their thoughts and behaviors how to resolve conflict. Conflict is an inevitable art of school and work, but it can be resolved in a positive way.
There are so many wonderful quotes and jewels of wisdom and inspiration in “The Last Lecture” given by Randy Pausch that it was difficult to pick just one to write about. Given his circumstances and the ultimate finality of his prognosis it is amazing that he could give such a speech at all. I have chosen the following few sentences from his speech to reflect upon relevant to my own life: “It is what it is and we can’t change it. We just have to decide how we are going to respond to it. We can not change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.” It is such an all encompassing philosophy of how to handle what life throws at you. It appeals to the higher version of “self” in each of us to rise above reaction and make conscious choices. It is applicable in almost every situation. In fact, as far as “life skills” goes, it could be considered equivalent to the “Golden Rule”.
must have organized all things to happen the way in which God has foreknowledge that
In the year of 2004, my grandmother was diagnosed with Lung Cancer. My first thought was “My grandmother is going to die,” although, that was not the result I anticipated. It was merely a hasty thought that intersected my mind. Based on the information from the doctor, I wasn’t sure on the amount of time I would have left to share with my grandmother. During this time, I knew that I would have to cherish each moment to a greater magnitude. Oftentimes, daily events of life
To put it another way, everything happens for a reason. There was an event that happened to me and it makes me think a lot about cherish. One day I saw a couple they argued in the street, they were seemed like really angry. When I just walked down the street in the afternoon, I thought they might be just arguing about some little tiny problem. However, the girl splashed a bottle of water on her boyfriend
People don't truly accept life for what it is until they've actually tasted adversity and went through those misfortunes and suffering. We are put through many hardships in life, and we learn to understand and deal with those issues along the way. We find that life isn't just about finding one's self, but about creating and learning from our experiences and background. Adversity shapes what we are and who we become as individuals. Yann Martel's Life of Pi shows us that adverse situations help shape a person's identity and play a significant role in one's lief by determining one's capabilities and potential, shaping one's beliefs and values, and defining the importance and meaning of one's self.
Right after getting mad, my reasoning doesn’t kick in. It usually takes ranting to someone and about an hour before I realize the reason they might have done it, or figure out that it really wasn’t that bad. After that, it usually takes a day or two before I fully let it go. To solve this, I think I need to take a couple of really good breathes and just close my eyes for a minute and think of things I love and just calm down before I make rash decisions that make me feel disappointed in myself