A Lecture Series For Students

Teaching is not merely about methods used and material presented in the classroom, but about shaping students’ lives to help them construct a firm foundation for a successful future. I desire to teach my students basic life skills as well as challenge them to set and reach their highest goals.

I chose to write an essay about the “Topic of Cancer” by Christopher Hitchens. In this short autobiographical essay, Hitchens discusses his experience with Esophageal cancer. Just one day after lanching his book “Hitch-22” Hitchens was made aware of his illness, where he later describes the news as “taking me from the country of well, to the stark frontier.” It was then he chose to write about his experience for the purpose of documenting the changes that he, and his body were about to go through with chemotherapy, and also for the purpose of contemplating his current situation. The reason that I chose this story is because of my own personal experiences that I have had with many loved ones in my life. There is one case in particular that stands out in my memory, among the rest. It was when my friend of many years discovered that he had a very rare form of brain cancer. Soon after undergoing chemotherapy, he lost his battle. There are many people that believe chemotherapy at any stage is the best, and often times, the only way to cure cancer, yet others claim that chemotherapy is not the answer at all. A close analysis of recent statistics can settle this debate.

During his speech, he is honest and accepting of his condition but continues to stay positive. Although he knows he’s dying, he’s still positive even through his darkest times. He makes his audience realize that their problems aren’t so big and to enjoy life.

A large factor that influenced Randy 's success, was the life he was exposed to growing up. Randy explains how wonderful his parents

environment and the people in the world, giving him a better image of what the world is

The lecture has affected me personally by letting me learn from some of Pausch’s past experiences. Pausch says, “The inspiration, and the permission to dream is huge.” This quote made me learn that people need to have the ability to think of what kind of dreams they want to inspire to

He learned that people can be cruel. That the world is not the same for various people

Despite his circumstances, Joel does his best to maintain his positive outlook. He says, “I have never gotten angry about my illnesses. I have been sad, but never angry.” In fact, in the face of this battle for his life, Joel finds contentment in maintaining his service to others. “The one thing having cancer has really done for me is it has reaffirmed my commitment to being of service to other people who are in greater need than I am. I found the path to unconditional love a long time ago. Having a life of love and care and compassion has been the right kind of life for

A seminar series titled “The Last Lecture” took place at Carnegie Mellon University. Professors were prompted to deliver lectures as if it was their last, while containing a “message of a lifetime”. Professor Randy Pausch delivered his speech titled “Achieving Your Childhood Dreams” as a part of this seminar on September 18th, 2007, a time in which had just been given life-threatening news. It had recently been estimated by doctors that this was the last three to six months of his life. Instead of speaking as if he was hypothetically dying like his fellow professors, Pausch was in an extremely ironic situation, as for in his case he really was dying, of pancreatic

Many people can relate to his personal battle with cancer and his dedication to cancer research. His speech was full of emotion. He gave examples of his anguish during a seven-day stay before the awards ceremony, explaining his liver complications, kidney failure, and multiple surgeries. This provided the audience with real life experiences to understand the depth of what this award stands for.

“My parents raised me to go out and work everyday to the best of your ability. They drove all over for hockey, soccer or lacrosse or any of those things we were doing as kids. But that family support really was something I didn’t understand at the time. My parents were driving an hour and a half or two hours to watch me play in a different city. Looking back I realize how much that means for a kid to have that familiarity with your parents.”

He never knew who his biological father was until he was 10 years old. The teasing throughout the years was harsh. They accused him of being a nobody with no father. Since then he strived to be somebody! He lived by it.

Standing on the stage, Washington provides uplifting words as these students move on to greater things. He uses words such as “dream”, “aspire” and “success” (Washington), to provide motivation

that his father was perfect and that he should live up to the same greatness.

However, behind his jolly appearance, there lies the hidden remembrance of a sad story with a happy ending. Curt Carrigan has been cancer-free for almost a year. After a four-year arduous fight with the disease, he triumphed over the tumors and now he has his life back.