The Story Behind The Action by Raychelle Riley

The quote from The Five People You Meet In Heaven states, “That there are no random acts. That we are all connected. That you can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind.” This quote means to me, simply what it says. Everyone has a purpose, a plan, and can affect the lives of other people. We have been put on this Earth for a reason. God has a plan for everyone's life, though it may take a while to realize this truth.

No life is more valuable than another life. Everyone’s life has a purpose. The things we do makes up the life we presently live. Your actions are not just picked from a bowl like a raffle ticket. Those actions were designed just for you, for a specific reason. The actions you take are never an accident. There is always an influence and explanation of why it happens, even though we might not yet know the reason. Your purpose is the reason you are here and the direct impact you make on the world around you.

One day, I was riding in the car with my dad, and we saw a homeless man. My dad drove up and handed the man a couple of dollars. Although we were not around to see the results of his actions, we know that we made a positive impact on someone who we did not know. Everyone is on a different path in life and the homeless man is not any less valuable than we are. Situations and circumstances do not dictate that. Even he has a purpose and a reason why he is here. We might not know the purpose now, but at least we know we have one in the end.

 Everyone has a plan for their life, and a path they take to follow along that plan. On that road are many bumps that may slow us down, mud puddles we might slip in, and people we might pass by. Some we will meet, and some we will only pass by. Even though we might not meet them it doesn’t mean they don’t play a part in our lives. The same thing happens with Eddie and the Blue Man in the book The Five People You Meet In Heaven. The Blue Man who thought he was a nothing, and thought he affected no one, suddenly became a key figure in a small boy’s life. We are all joined together, and no one is considered a nothing. We are all valuable and contribute something in this world, no matter how big or small.

Everyone plays a role, and what we do affects others, whether we know it or not. This concept is similar to the domino effect. When the first domino falls, it knocks the second one into the third.  From there, the chain reaction continues until the momentum stops, and all the dominoes on that specific line are down. However, sometimes it doesn’t just affect one person, but it can impact a whole group of people. For example, whenever one of my family members come home in a bad mood, it might change everyone else’s mood. It spreads like wildfire until the whole family is in a bad mood.  People affect our everyday lives in positive and in negatives ways.There is great truth in the fact that everyone and everything is connected.

"There are no random acts. Everything is connected for a reason." (What this means to me)

 The quote "That there are no random acts.  That we are all connected.  That you can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind." means to me that everything and everybody's actions in this world effect one another.  Not necessarily good or bad actions either.  The quote leads my thoughts to the point that the decisions you make can effect the lives of many other people either radically or minimally.  You might not even know it, either.  Eddie running in front of the blue man's car is an example of this.  The lesson that I receive from this is that you must examine your situations closely before you make a decision.  This isn't strictly for Eddie's situation either.  I myself have been in vaguely similar situations.  Nothing life threatening of course.  This quote is quite thought provoking.  Really the entire book The Five People You Meet in Heaven is a really deep and thoughtful book.  However, this quote really made me connect the lessons in the book to my life.  This quote meant a lot to me, and after I finished the book I even thought back on it.  This a fantastic line and it really stirred my thought up.

There are no Random Acts

       "That there are no random acts. That we are all connected. That you can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind." What this means to me is that everything someone may or may not do ultimately affects the people around that person, and not only the people around that person but every person to ever live after that. The choices we make and the things we do have consequences and effects on others and on ourselves. One decision we make, right or wrong, can affect the outcome of another person's life. One decision another person makes can affect our lives. What the quote is saying is that no act is just a random act that does not have any effect on anyone else. Rather, every single decision, action, choice, or move we make has a direct effect on everyone, not just ourselves. One thing we do may help someone and cause him or her to help someone else, and the chain, so to speak, continues on and on with another person having a positive effect on someone else. The chain could also have a negative effect on others. Often times, we are unaware of affecting someone else's life, just like in the story how Eddie had no idea about him being the reason of The Blue Man's death. This particular quote makes me think about life in a bigger picture. I am not only living for myself. I am living for all the people around me and all the people to ever live. Every choice I ever make possibly has an effect on millions of others. That is crazy to think about. No matter how big or how small the act is, it has an effect on everyone. This makes me feel more responsible for my actions, knowing that they affect everyone, not just myself. The next time I am faced with a decision, I will remember to make the right one, because it may have a tremendous effect on someone's life, and possibly millions of more people's lives.

Cause and Effect

                “There are no random acts. We are all connected. You can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind.”

           

                In life, most of us seem to believe that something we do will not matter to somebody else. When in reality, it can affect many people around us. Without realizing, that bet you win could cause somebody else to lose their home. That plastic bag you threw out could cause a bird to lose its life. In the novel The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom, the main character, Eddie, had no idea how he’d affected the Blue Man’s life. He didn’t even really know he’d actually existed. By running out into the street to collect his baseball, he caused the Blue Man to lose himself and swerve, resulting in him losing his life. Eddie then continued on with his life without the knowledge of the fact that he’d actually caused a man to lose his life.

            

              We tend to disregard some important things in life. If we were more careful with what we do, we’d cause fewer problems. There is cause and effect. Whatever you do will cause another thing to happen. You could kick a ball and win the game. Eat a cake and gain a pound. Swallow a peanut and go into anaphylactic shock.

           

              In The Five People You Meet in Heaven, two teenagers robbed a store and took alcohol and cigarettes. They then proceeded to drop their glass bottles down an overpass. By dropping a bottle, they caused the character, Marguerite, to swerve and hit something. She ended up with liver damage and broken bones. Their careless actions caused a woman to nearly lose her life.

            

             In conclusion, there are no random acts. Everything you do causes an effect. Some are small, some are large. We disregard the little things in life. We only move on our account. If we were more cautious, fewer large effects would be caused.

Reason

  "That there are no random acts. That we are all connected. That you can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind." This quote, to me means three things.
The first that stands for the first sentence of the quote. There are no random acts because every thing happens for a reason. Its just like saying we were all born for a reason, without reason where would we be? Reason defines us, humans and what we do which is why and how every thing happens.
  This is just like how Eddie's commanding officer risked his life to keep Eddie and the other soldiers from death, his reason was to save his friends because it wasn't their time yet. The second is how we are all connected. We are all connected in a way because we are similar to one another. we were all destined to be who we are for the same fact to live our lives as who we are. To be who we are is why we are similar which is why we are connected.
  This leads to how ,"you can no more separate one life from another." Every life is important for the same reason to live as who we are with one another with compassion as we do our best to live for the better. When I first read the quote this is what instantly came to my mind.
 
 
 

Unintended and Connected Consequences

     The perception that there are no random acts, that we are all connected allows one to link seemingly unrelated events to each other. In the book, the simple act of Eddie chasing the ball into the street forever connects him to the death of a stranger, the Blue Man.  Being the first person Eddie meets in heaven, the Blue Man challenges Eddie to understand that all actions in life are connected to consequences, even when they are not your own. This concept helps me to understand that decisions I make may affect others. Although I may not be aware of the consequential effect of certain actions, others may be forced to live with those consequences.
     The idea that no life can be separated from another more than you can separate a breeze from the wind complicates the idea that we live as individuals. The story, on multiple occassions, entwines the lives of the characters through seemingly unrelated events.  Such is the case when Eddie's father and Emile end up hospitalized for different reasons.  Although the cause of each injury/illness was different, the two men were connected. Eddie's father was the head of maintenance at Ruby Pier; the amusement park established by Emile. This reminds me that there may be instances where I am connected to people through a shared emotion of joy or hardship although our journeys to that point may be unrelated.  
     Collectively, one cannot discern who, what or when the consequences of a seemingly unimportant decision or action will affect another. After reading the book and understanding its meaning, I have noticed that some decisions made in the past, that I thought were unimportant, have affected me or others in unexpected ways.
         

fate is destiny

             The quote, "That there are no random act. That we are all connected. That you can no more separate on life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind." means to me fate and destiny is real. Fate and destiny is basically the same, but fate is bound to happen and destiny may occur. There is not a random act, we are all connected in a chain reaction that occurs in our life. We are not separated from another life because sometimes what they do can affect you, even if you know them or not. When I hear this quote, fate and destiny is connected to this.
              Fate and destiny is something we usually hope that happen, or feels like it brought two or more people together. Which, these acts can affect us like a domino affect in our life from one to another. For example, if two people break up, and your friend happen to be that girl's friend too. She ends up not being your friend anymore because she is helping the other girl through her break up. Even though you did not know the girl, she can affect your life in ways you never know. These acts somehow are good or bad for us to teach us a lesson. We are connected to others somehow in someway, and we do not even notice it. Peoples acts can affect and I think that is what connects us.

The Five People You Meet in Heaven, CJL

            Have you ever thought about why things happen in life? In the book “The Five People You Meet in Heaven”, Eddie learns how his life was affected by his and others actions. In this book Eddie realizes that there are no random acts in life. He learns that everything is connected. Like Eddie I realized that everything happens for a reason.

            While reading the book, “The Five People You Meet in Heaven”, I've learned a lot of new things about life and how the decisions you make in life while you’re younger, could affect you in the long run. In the book, Eddie runs into the street so he can save his ball. By doing so, the “Blue Man”, swerved out of the way and ended up crashing his car, but by swerving he saved Eddie’s life. Another incident in which the quote takes place is when the Captain shot Eddie in his knee. He might have injured Eddie for his entire life, but he also saved his life by stopping Eddie from going into the burning building. So the quote “ you can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind” means that everything is the same. Basically a life is a life. There are no differences between the two.

            All in all, I think every decision is made for a reason. That there are no random acts in life. In my opinion the world is connected by everyone’s decision.

What is to be...Will be.

The quote, "That there are no random acts.  That we are all connected.  That you can no more separate a breeze from a wind,"  to me means exactly what it says, that there are truly no random acts in life.  Everything happens for a reason.  Meaning nothing happens that wasn't supposed to happen.   The book, The Five People you Meet in Heaven, tells how when the main character, Eddie, was a child he chased a ball that bounced into the street, causing another character in the book, The Blue Man, to get into a car accident and die.  If Eddie wouldn't have chased the ball, The Blue Man wouldn't have gotten into the accident and died.  Further explaining the point,  that everything happens for a reason.  The book of  Ecclesiastes verse 3:1-15 says, "Everything that happens in this world happens at the time God chooses. He sets the time for life and the time for death, the time for planting and the time for pulling up, the time for killing and the time for healing, the time for tearing down and the time for building.  He sets the time for sorrow and the time for joy, the time for mourning and the time for dancing,  the time for kissing and the time for not kissing.  He sets the time for finding all the time we are loosing, the time for saving and the time for throwing away, the time for tearing and the time for mending, the time for silence and the time for talking.  He sets the time for love and for the time of hate, the time for war and the time for peace. What do we gain from all our work?  I know the heavy burdens that God has laid on us.  He has set the right time for everything.  He has given us desire to know the future, but never fully understand what he does.  So I realized that all we can do is be happy and do the best we can while we are still alive.  All I have worked for.  It is God's gift.   I know that everything God does will last forever.  You can't add anything to it or take anything away from it.  And one thing God does is to make us stand in awe of him.  Whatever happens or can happen has already happened before.  God makes the same thing happen again and again."  Further explaining my point that everything that happens, happens with a purpose.  Whether or not it is good or bad or if it teaches a lesson or has one learn a lesson.  Whether it's put into the hands of God or to make your own destiny.  I believe that everything does happen for a reason and that reason has yet to be discovered.