Randy Pausch's last lecture

Carnegie Mellon Professor Randy Pausch (Oct. 23, 1960 - July 25, 2008) gave his last lecture at the university Sept. 18, 2007, before a packed McConomy Auditorium. In his moving presentation, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," Pausch talked about his lessons learned and gave advice to students on how to achieve their own career and personal goals. For more, visit www.cmu.edu/randyslecture. ___________________________ 47. It is quite a young age for a man to die. He suffered from pancreatic cancer, one of the most aggressive cancers. I met Dr Hotma (my Indonesian gastroenterologist) in early 2006, after more than a year the last time I saw him, before I departed for SG. Wanna know what he said when he saw me? He wasn't sure that I was still alive... He thought I was dead. LOL. ...knowing that some small masses started appearing on my pancreas at that time. I was his 3rd patient with such case, in his 20-years of careers -- the other former 2 patients have passed away. So, when Randy Pausch showed some pictures of his CAT-Scan, wow... they just look familiar. And I had a grasp of what he might dealt with. No matter how good his doctors are -- as some of them are the world's best, he claimed. It's so aggressive, spreading to your body... He already had some 10 tumors in his liver... Well... I've been doing fine... HE still lends me His time, to do His works. It was a powerful message, wasn't it? Because it was delivered as "your last chance", it must be something very important to say. So, Mr Pausch used it to encourage people to pursue their childhood dreams... What would be my "last lecture"? I was kinda astonished that he looked "happy", light-hearted when he talked about his impending death... esp about his claim that it was not about 'spirituality & religion'... and joked about the deathbed conversion. I couldn't imagine how his wife felt... she cried. But I am sure that she knew she got to be strong... She has to raise their 3 kids after the death of their father.