Top 27 Tuesdays with Morrie Quotes by Mitch Albom

This year one of the best birthday gifts that I got was from my dear friend and former student Sakshi. “Tuesdays with Morrie” isn’t just a book it is a doorway into the meaning of LIFE as well as DEATH!

The book talks about Morrie a professor of sociology at Brandeis University. He loves to dance and make merry until he finds out that he is dying from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Morrie is shaken up by the news, yet, he manages to come to terms with his illness.

Throughout “Tuesdays with Morrie”, we see the disease gradually taking over the joyful professor: he no longer dances; gets confined to a chair and is dependent on other people for moving around and other routine tasks.

In the end, Morrie is bed ridden and has fully succumbed to ALS. However, before the disease takes his life he gives some valuable life-lessons to his beloved disciple Mitch. “Tuesdays with Morrie” demonstrates how Morrie’s illness gives Mitch a better and more profound perspective that ends up in changing his life.

Here are top 27 “Tuesdays with Morrie” quotes by Mitch Albom:

“Everyone knows they’re going to die, but nobody believes it.”

“The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in.”

“Death ends a life, not a relationship.”

“Detachment doesn’t mean you don’t let the experience penetrate you. On the contrary, you let it penetrate you fully. That’s how you are able to leave it.”

“The truth is, once you learn how to die, you learn how to live.”

“Accept who you are; and revel in it.”

“Do I wither up and disappear, or do I make the best of my time left?”

“What’s wrong with being number two?”

“Love is how you stay alive, even after you are gone.”

“The fact is, there is no foundation, no secure ground, upon which people may stand today if it isn’t the family.”

“The culture we have does not make people feel good about themselves. And you have to be strong enough to say if the culture doesn’t work, don’t buy it.”

“You see, you closed your eyes. That was the difference. Sometimes you cannot believe what you see, you have to believe what you feel. And if you are ever going to have other people trust you, you must feel that you can trust them, too–even when you’re in the dark. Even when you’re falling.”

“As you grow, you learn more. Aging is not just decay…it’s growth. It’s more than the negative that you’re going to die, it’s also the positive that you understand that you’re going to die and that you live a better life because of it.”

“If you hold back on the emotions–if you don’t allow yourself to go all the way through them–you can never get to being detached, you’re too busy being afraid. You’re afraid of the pain, you’re afraid of the grief. You’re afraid of the vulnerability that loving entails. But by throwing yourself into these emotions, by allowing yourself to dive in, all the way, over your head even, you experience them fully and completely.”

“I like myself better when I’m with you.”

“Love is how you stay alive, even after you are gone.”

“If you’re always battling against getting older, you’re always going to be unhappy, because it will happen anyhow.”

“Don’t let go too soon, but don’t hold on too long.”

“Forgive yourself before you die. Then forgive others.”

“Don’t cling to things because everything is impermanent.”

“Love wins, love always wins.”

“I give myself a good cry if I need it, but then I concentrate on all good things still in my life.”

“This is part of what a family is about, not just love. It’s knowing that your family will be there watching out for you. Nothing else will give you that. Not money. Not fame. Not work.”

“Forgive yourself before you die. Then forgive others.”

“If you’re trying to show off for people at the top, forget it. They will look down on you anyhow. And if you’re trying to show off for people at the bottom, forget it. They will only envy you. Status will get you nowhere. Only an open heart will allow you to float equally between everyone.”

“Money is not a substitute for tenderness, and power is not a substitute for tenderness.”

“So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they’re busy doing things they think are important. This is because they’re chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.”