“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.” – Morrie Schwartz, Tuesdays with Morrie

I have been re-reading Tuesdays with Morrie recently and always find it such an inspiration. I think this is partly because I have a strong attachment to the situation I was in when I picked it up. I had just been robbed of all of my possessions, (including my cameras and 3 months worth of my work) in a crazy-ass knife-point robbery/mugging/kidnapping in Managua. Needless to say, I needed something to lift my spirits.  The next day, after buying my bus ticket to Guatemala, I went to the one English bookstore in Managua and waded through a bunch of terrible English titles and finally landed on Tuesdays with Morrie.  While reading on the 13-hour trip to Guatemala, I went through and underlined a lot of the inspiring parts in the book and although I had already been thinking a lot about some of the themes the book touches on, it was amazing to have it crystallized in such a simple and touching story.

Through reading it, I appreciated my family, friends, and the world around me so much more and managed to put the loss of my cameras and photos behind me.