Stories with Books

        “If you had a short time to live, what would you do?”

The Last Lecture is an amazingly delightful read. The book is an autobiographical sketchbook of Professor Randy Pausch, diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and warned of a limited lifetime. He had three kids, and a loving wife, which led him to do something meaningful before the departure of his soul.

          The book is a way for Prof Pausch to take forward “what he began on stage”. It is a treasure-mine of gems of wisdom, everyday tips and tricks and some deep life lessons here and there. The central idea is perhaps to be aware of one’s “childhood dreams” and seeing their fulfilment. Perhaps no man could have childhood dreams as crazy as Randy Pausch’s – floating in zero gravity, meeting Captain Kirk, having an article featured in World Book Encyclopedia and working as a Disney Imagineer.

          For me, the book was like a gas for my own dreams and aspirations. It taught me that life should be lived with “larger-than-life” purposes and big aims and small acts of kindness.

          The Last Lecture was one of the first books that I picked up to reread – so much did I love it. You feel like you’re sitting beside and talking to a cool but seasoned and wise uncle, listening to his random experiences, learning and findings.

          A legend does everything in his own special way: and that way becomes legendary. Even when in the face of death, he does not tremble too much in his shoes and instead calculates how he can make his remaining life and approaching death more meaningful. An injured lion still wants to roar.

          The Last Lecture is about being that legendary.

Favourite Quotes:

1. An injured lion still wants to roar.
2. What do I, alone, truly have to offer?
3. When there’s an elephant in the room, introduce it.
4. You’re not hired for your dreams; you’re hired for your skills.
5. Treat the disease, not the symptom.
6. Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted.
7. Manual labour is beneath no one!
8. Sometimes all you have to do is ask.
9. Luck is indeed when preparation meets opportunity.
10. I find the best shortcut is the long way, which is basically two words: work hard.