My husband and I took a weekend trip to California without the kiddos. It was fabulous to spend time just as a couple (marriage maintenance as my parents refer to these trips as), not have to worry about nap times, and going for a run as a couple without having to push a stroller.
The drive alone is fabulous as well. It's so wonderful to just be able to talk as adults and not have to turn around to pass snacks, toys, or put out fires between the kiddos.
A car trip without kids means we can also listen to an audiobook. This is super exciting for us!
We gave The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch a listen to, and we both thoroughly enjoyed it.
I give The Last Lecture 4.5 out of 5 stars. It's a great book with great life lessons. The Last Lecutre is a great discussion book that men and women, young and old, will enjoy equally. As fair warning, it is a bit touching and emotional at times as you easily relate to it. I totally cried at points, but even my husband (who seriously never cries) mentioned how he was having a hard time listening to Pausch talk about his kids and missing them since he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and given only months to live. . Therefore, this book can touch everyone, even the not so emotional men like my husband.
The only reason this book lost half of a star was b/c at times I wasn't completed riveted with this non-fiction/memoir read. However, even with my pickiness with the rating system I will say that this book is a fabulous book.
I would actually recommend this book to men and women high school to adult. It would also make a great gift for a recent high school or college graduate. The lessons learned in this book is applicable to anyone at any stage.
This book is full of more than 50 small life lessons. Those short life lessons allow you as a reader to read and listen to it a little bit, go away, and then come back at a later date to read more. You aren't going to impact your comprehension of the book b/c of the short lesson format. This is helpful for the reluctant reader aka the one that doesn't love or have a habit of reading.
This short lesson/stories format is great as an audio book and for someone that wants to listen to something at home between lots of activity or for commuting to work. A bonus is the audio book reader is fabulous as well.
I don't love all audio books, but I do think readers are improving b/c I haven't had any qualms with an audio book version of a book for years.
Amazon had the following book description that helps you understand the background of the story.
"A lot of professors give talks titled "The Last Lecture." Professors are asked to consider their demise and to ruminate on what matters most to them. And while they speak, audiences can't help but mull the same question: What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If we had to vanish tomorrow, what would we want as our legacy?
When Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked to give such a lecture, he didn't have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave--"Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams"--wasn't about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling the dreams of others, of seizing every moment (because "time is all you have...and you may find one day that you have less than you think"). It was a summation of everything Randy had come to believe. It was about living.
In this book, Randy Pausch has combined the humor, inspiration and intelligence that made his lecture such a phenomenon and given it an indelible form. It is a book that will be shared for generations to come.
"We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand." --Randy Pausch"
This book is great, and a book that you can refer to and read over and over again to be reminded of the important lessons that we should apply to our lives.
Below are a few of my favorite lessons from Pausch:
"Luck is indeed where preparation meets opportunity."
"Complaining does not work as a strategy. Whining does nothing."
"Give your kids permission to dream. Help fuel their dreams as well."
"The best short cut in life is only two words... work hard."
Those are just a few of the 50+ lessons learned from The Last Lecture. All around it is full of great advice that makes you really think and want to improve in your personal life, as a parent, and in your career.
This last lecture is a book that is worth the little time it'll take to read/listen to. Go check it out for your next road trip or free time you can find.
Happy inspiring reading!
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