At the end of senior year, students will begin to pack their bags and get ready for their future. There is stress to become someone new and have your priorities set for a specific career. This is when people should understand the importance of one book, tuesdays with Morrie. When reading this book, you learn about a student, Mitch Albom, and his teacher, Morrie Schwartz. It is explained throughout that the teacher is suffering from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (known as ALS and Lou Gehrig’s disease). This affects what happens to Mitch as he bonds with his favorite teacher whom he once was less focused on keeping contact with, and more focused on making money.

The Past: In the book, they explain how Mitch was Morrie’s college student at Brandeis University. Morrie was a very enthusiastic fellow who occasionally busted a move to any music available. Mitch recognized this and found Morrie as one of his favorite professors. He graduated fair and proud with many other students in a hot, sweaty atmosphere on a Saturday. Morrie hugged Mitch, and Mitch promised to keep in contact. He failed to keep his promise.

The Present: One night, after working as a sports writer for a long time, he watches the television to find out that his old teacher was dying from ALS and could not walk anymore. He decided to finally go see his old friend and began to learn more about how Morrie is dealing with the condition.

The Future: Morrie explains that he is embracing his imminent death in the future. He plans to view death as entering something unknown, and is okay with being vulnerable before he passes. He teaches Mitch that by acknowledging the outcome of death, you can begin to live and truly find something that makes you feel like you are doing something meaningful. This allows for Mitch to reconnect with himself and take a step back from his stressful career that he focused on only for money.

While you begin to understand the meaning of the story, there is a fellow avid reader of this book you should be introduced to. Mr. Anderson, an English teacher at Flagstaff High School, said this in accordance with one of his favorite lines in the book, “For seniors now-and-upcoming, it is inevitable that students start to feel like the end of this chapter will mean that they have to start to make money. That’s not what this book entails. The truth is, you should make connections with people and give yourself to others with your love, time, and compassion as it fulfills you more than taking what you need from life.” When you choose a career, make sure you can keep yourself connected with people who help you live a better life by making you more emotionally fulfilled. The scary fact of death brings a lot of fear for people, but Morrie began to reconnect with people he truly cared for despite it. This idea that you don’t need to have physical things, but rather relationships with people, is important for all seniors to welcome as they graduate. Don’t be afraid of death, embrace your life, and make something special. As Morrie once said, “Aging is not decay, you know. It's growth. It’s more than the negative that you’re going to die, it's also the positive that you understand you are going to die, and that you live a better life because of it.”

Seniors, success comes from impacting the world through human connection. It’s okay to give into the material things sometimes as that has been what you’ve been taught, but try to give people your love now. Remember, this is a farewell from Morrie, but you are the recipients and the future.