Essay --

The Last Lecture is a powerful and inspirational book written by a Professor of Computer Science, Randy Pausch. The book is a memoir of his life based on the last lecture he gave at Carnegie Mellon University about a year before he died of pancreatic cancer. Although, it was his last lecture, it is clear that the lecture itself is not about dying. Similarly, the book is not about Pausch’s death. The book consists of various stories from Randy’s Pausch life, and ideas on living life to the fullest. In this paper, I will review Pausch story, and identify issues, concerns, and possibilities discussed in the book. Further, I will explore what needs to be done in respond to these issues. Book overview In the beginning of the book, Pausch reveals that he is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and his recent treatments did not work, so he has only months to live. â€Å"While for the most part I’m in terrific physical shape, I have ten tumors in my liver and I have only a few months left to live. I am a father of three young children, and married to the woman of my dreams. While I could easily feel sorry for myself, that wouldn’t do them, or me, any good† (Pausch, 2008). Knowing that he has a very limited time to live, Pausch decides to write a lecture on achieving childhood dreams. To him, the lecture will be a legacy that he can leave for his children. When Pausch discusses his childhood dreams, he describes how his parents made achieving his dreams possible by their constant support. He talks about each of his childhood dreams and what he has learned from them. Pausch never made it to the NFL, but he had learned many valuable lessons from participating in sports. For instance, Pausch learned important lessons from his... ...g dealers or gang dealers (Rudkin, 2003). Conclusion This paper is a report of the book The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. In my work I made an attempt to identify issues, concerns, and possibilities discussed in the book, and to explore what needs to be done in respond to these issues. The book is a memoir of Pausch’s life in which he shares his wisdom about how to live a productive and meaningful life. The lessons, questions and issues that this book raise are universal. Many people can benefit from the book regardless of their age, race, or social status. I cannot express how much I enjoyed this book. Randy’s Pausch life is a truly unique powerful story that can serve as a guide for families, schools, and community leaders on how to help our children develop the skills of resilience to deal more effectively with stress, and to cope with everyday challenges.