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Unfortunately, at the time, I wasn’t much of a reader. Hence, I took the easy yet unethical route of copying the first book summary I stumbled upon on the Internet. That book was, ‘The Five People You Meet in Heaven’ written by Mitch Albom (author of the best-selling novel ‘Tuesdays with Morrie’).
Eleven years later, when we are being reminded of our mortality at every waking minute, I thought it was about time when I right my wrong and read this book about life after death.
Background
The
hero of this story is Eddie. He is a war veteran who feels trapped in a
monotonous and meaningless life of fixing rides at an amusement park, ‘Ruby
Pier’.
Ironically,
this story begins with the end when on Eddie’s 83rd birthday, Eddie
passes away in a tragic accident while trying to save a little girl.
When
he wakes up in the afterlife, heaven isn’t precisely what he had hoped for. He
learns that he would meet five people. Each of these five people was in his
life for a reason. Reasons which he may not have known at the time. This is
what heaven is for, understanding your
life on earth.
Without
spoiling the book for you, here are the five most important lessons from ‘The
Five People You Meet in Heaven’, which feel more relevant now than ever before
–
The
First Lesson
The first-person
Eddie meets explains to him that there are no random acts in life. Each and
every human is connected and is inseparable from one another. One human life
may have to end only so that another one could go on.
Why
do people gather when others die?
Deep down, the human spirit knows that all lives eventually intersect. When death takes someone, it misses someone else. This small distance between being taken and being missed changes lives forever.
Deep down, the human spirit knows that all lives eventually intersect. When death takes someone, it misses someone else. This small distance between being taken and being missed changes lives forever.
The
Second Lesson
Sacrifice
is an integral part of life. One shouldn’t regret it. Instead, it’s something
to aspire to. It might be a small act of letting go of something you love.
It
might be a daughter taking care of her parents, even if it means letting go of
her dreams. It might be a soldier taking a bullet for the sake of his nation
and band of brothers.
The
Third Lesson
Holding
anger and resentment is a poison, which eats you from inside. You may think
hatred attacks the person who harms you.
But
instead, hatred is a curved blade which harms us more than anyone. Especially
when the people against whom you hold your grudges are your parents.
Forgive.
Your soul doesn’t deserve that burden.
The
Fourth Lesson
There
are people who face the misfortune of losing their loved ones too soon. It is indeed
tragic and a crushing feeling.
However,
lost love is love nonetheless. You may not see their smile or spend all those
happy moments with them. But when all those senses weaken, another heightens.
Memory becomes your partner. You nurture it. You hold it. You dance with it.
Life
has to end, but love doesn’t.
The
Last Lesson
You may
tell yourself time and again that whatever you have done in life is meaningless
and insignificant. But all those dull, mundane things may be the reason for
someone’s happiness. The reason that someone lives.
Favorite
quotes
“People
often belittle the place where they were born. But heaven can be found in the
most unlikely corners.”
“Strangers
are just family you have yet to come to know.”
“The
only time we waste is the time we spend thinking we are alone.”
“…the
world is full of stories, but the stories are all one.”
Written
By - Snehil Kesarwani
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