Perception Sucks

Basically, this is a story about how incompetent I can be.

I have this penchant where if I see a bunch of people running in one direction, I want to run the opposite way as fast as I can.  I reminded myself yesterday and today, for that is exactly how long it took me to read this book, that this little attitude of mine is not always a good thing.

I became aware of this book about the same time I became aware of books about cheese, fish, fans and performing the art of management in one minute.  For some reason, and I have no idea on earth why, I lumped this book into that category.  About eight years later Victoria purchased a book by this author and raved about it.  "Dad, you gotta get this book!  Maybe though you want to first pick up the book Mitch wrote in 97." 

I am beginning to understand the meaning behind the word brand - A mark that is burned into flesh.  A perception that is burned into our minds.  Even with Vickie's enthusiastic endorsement, I couldn't buy the book.  This was a cheese-fish-fan book and I couldn't buy it. 

After ten years I finally listened.  I listened to someone say what this book was actually about.  I came to understand it is a true book - I never knew this.  So I bought the book on Friday, started to read it on Saturday and finished it today.  It is one of the best books that I've ever read. 

I am not going to review Tuesday's With Morrie because you've already read it.  I believe I am the last person in America who hadn't.  I will say that it is extremely well written!  I only say extremely well because I cannot think of anything stronger at the moment. 

You see, that's the thing about branding.  It matters not what the one with the iron thinks.  It only matters what the one who is getting his flesh seared, perceives.    

Comments

[Rosa Say]

Dave, I too liked Tuesdays with Morrie, however it's got spot #3 in my Mitch Albom library. I LOVED The Five People You Meet in Heaven, and #2 for me is his most recent one, For One More Day. All are the "can't stop reading until I'm done" kind of books I wish I knew how to write!

[dave]

Hey Rosa. After reading this one I have no option but to pick up the others.

Reading writing like this is like a kid listening to his favorite rock band then playing that music in his garage with his buddies...its got to make us writer better!

[Deb Estep]

I've never read the book, but I did borrow the audio from the library just last year.

The book is read by the author, Mitch Albom.
I don't think another person could have delivered it in just the way he did as the person who lived the story.

It also brought to life what our Uncle Louie must have went through. He passed in 1971 of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, "Lou Gehrig's disease. I was 9 the year he died and we lived several hundred miles away. Still, I could imagine what our Mother's sister Mary went through as she cared for her husband as long as she could at home.
There were certainly no private nurses and the care fell to our Aunt and her two children who would have been in their early 20's and maybe one a teenager.

From a child's perspective, and then only hearing bits and pieces, it was most frightening. After listening to the book,
I felt a greater sense of calm about my Uncle's death than I ever had in the past.

So many lessons from this simple story, but the greatest for me was love and taking the time to express to those you care about just how much they mean to you. TODAY, not in some far off time when it's their last days. I'm not just talking about expressing it to family, family are the easy ones, it's the other people who touch our lives so deeply, yet we fail to express our love and appreciation to them.

Ya know Dave, I'm thinking you should pay more attention to that kid of yours when she tells you to read something !! LOL

Love ya bro !

[dave]

Deb - you wish you were 9. You were actually 13. How do the Byrds say it? "I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now..."

I cannot imagine physically crossing paths with a person like Morrie...what a treasure...I've never been in the same universe with someone like him.