The sad news has arrived. Professor Randy Pausch succumbed to the ravages of pancreatic cancer after a noble fight and a noteworthy battle to make the world aware of the disease that killed him. As he wisely observed, pancreatic cancer does not have a celebrity spokesperson because its victims do not live long enough. So, during the last ten months, he had become an accidental national celebrity for an engaging "last lecture" and as an intrepid crusader to fight this disease, even though his own demise was inevitable.
For those of you unfamiliar with Dr. Pausch, he was Professor of Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction and Design at Carnegie Mellon University. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in August 2006, undertook aggressive chemotherapies and radiation treatments, but a year later his cancer had metastasized to his liver and spleen. According to his doctors then, he had but three to six months of functional health remaining.
Carnegie Mellon, as well as other universities, has a tradition called "The Last Lecture." The context is simple but inspiring: What if you have but one last chance to share your experiences and wisdom with others? What enduring values, lessons and ideas would you communicate if this is your final chance?
Professor Pausch, who I will refer to as Randy, gave his last lecture in September 2007, but of course it was not a hypothetical lecture framework in his case. It was reality; he was dying. But the lecture is not about dying; it is about really achieving your childhood dreams. Randy presented his lecture with enthusiasm, humor, humility and clarity.
A videotaped recording of this lecture ended up on YouTube, and millions have watched it. Randy appeared on Oprah's daytime television show and gave a condensed version of the lecture. Jeffrey Zaslow with the Wall Street Journal, who had attended the live lecture, worked with Randy to write and publish a small book of wisdom and motivational encouragement, also called "The Last Lecture." (I wrote the third posted review of this book on Amazon.com.) The book topped bestseller lists for weeks following its release in April.
Defying the odds against him, Randy nevertheless lived long enough to see his lecture become a worldwide phenomenon, to watch his book soar to heights of publishing success, to appear on ABC network in an hour-long special with Diane Sawyer, to appear on The Oprah Winfrey Show with eleven precious minutes to communicate his powerful messages, to testify before Congress about the need for research into preventing and curing this horrific disease, to give an address in May for the 2008 Carnegie Mellon graduating class, and, finally, to keep his admirers informed about his journey through a personal website.
Randy wasn't just a dedicated professor, a father of three small children, a husband very much in love with his wife Jai, and a valient crusader for those afflicted by fatal diseases. At 47, he was also a young Boomer man who has given us a glimpse of how an optimistic generation will tackle the final challenges of mortality and eventual dying.
Through his brave journey he demonstrated the many ways that this next generation of aging mortals will confront the inevitable: by communicating new narratives about the value of human life, by showing how one's final months can be dedicated to sharing timeless wisdom with children and young people, by not going quietly into that dark night.
Randy spent his final days under hospice care, a noble organization that gives the truest context for reconciliation, remembrance, communication, acceptance and dignity. (I had the immense privilege of addressing the nation's hospice CEO's at Duke University in October 2006 as part of a meeting of the National Hospice Work Group. I also participated in a PBS special focusing on hospice, which will be released in August.)
In pondering how a generation will change dying in the most constructive ways, I realized that those Boomers who address the challenges of a slow dying process will likely choose to die the way they've lived: idealistically, intensely and intently focused on creating a legacy for those who survive. Many will follow in Randy's footsteps. They will give new meaning to the end of our mortal journeys, leaving behind a wiser nation.
Maybe they will help our fragile species finally understand and accept that human life is precious and each person, given the proper context, can contribute meaningfully to our collective journey, even in the final days.
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