One day some time ago, I was flipping through channels and I landed on Oprah. There was some guy that I’ve never heard of named Randy Pausch talking about something called “The Last Lecture”. For some reason, I chose not to change the channel and I sat there listening to him, captivated. A few days later I searched for it on youtube and listed it as my first Favorite.
Over the last few months I’ve watched that video several dozen times. I found it on my droid app as an mp3 and downloaded just about everything that I could find referencing “The Last Lecture”. I’ve tried to use his lessons as a type of barometer for my life and lifestyle which brings me to this post.
Two Christmases ago, I bought Damien an AIRSOFT GUN. When he first got it, he'd beg on a weekly basis for me to go outside and play with him. I of course did and we'd have a blast. However, as time passed, we don't play too often and he hasn’t really touched his gun in awhile. A few weeks ago, he found the gun lying in the garage and chose to take it in back for a spin. Not long after, he brought the gun in the house and asked me if he could take it apart. I asked him, “What do you mean apart?” He said that he wanted to clean everything but also see if he’d be able to put everything back together. I instantly thought back to the lecture and referenced the part of letting your kids draw on the walls. I understand that Damien is taking apart a gun and not drawing on the walls but in essence the lessons are very similar. I told Damien he could and he began. As Damien started to take everything apart, I could see the little wheels in his head starting to spin. He got the cleaning part done but ran out of time and left the gun disassembled on the kitchen table. A few days later, my dad noticed the screws and asked why the gun was in shambles. I told him Damien wanted to do it and my dad told me that that was a bad idea and the gun is more than likely shot (Pun intended). I gave my dad a broad summary of The Last Lecture and explained to him that the gun is only a thing; how it’s only something of materialistic value. This past weekend as Damien and Anabelle came back; Damien was back on that table trying to reassemble everything. Again though, Damien ran out of time before we dropped him off at his grandparent’s house. I’m sure this weekend, if not next, with his determination, Damien will finish what he had started. Whether the gun works or not, I’m just glad that Damien had a chance to play engineer and mechanic. After all, it's just a thing.
BE INSPIRED
Thank you Randy Pausch for the lessons!
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