The Connection Between us

  “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.“ To me, this quote simply means that our lives are all somehow connected, and that the decisions we make today can have an affect on our lives as well as the lives of others. In the story, “The Five People You Meet in Heaven”, by Mitch Albom, a man named Eddie meets the five people who had the biggest impact on his life and learns an important lesson from each of them.
  The first person Eddie meets in heaven is the blue man. When Eddie was a child, he was playing baseball with his friends and the ball rolled out into the street. As Eddie went after it, he caused the truck that was coming down the street to swerve and barely miss hitting him. The Blue man, who was driving the truck, crashes into a parked car and dies. It was because of Eddies decision to chase after the ball that he crashed his truck and died. The blue man teaches Eddie that all lives are connected and that your decisions can have an effect on other people.
  Eddie also meets an old woman named Ruby, even though Eddie never met her, she still had a big impact on his life. Ruby’s husband was the man who built the original Ruby Pier. This was where Eddie grew up, worked, and died. If the pier was never built, Eddie wouldn’t have worked there, and he wouldn’t have died from the roller coaster accident that happened at the pier.
  After reading this story, I have learned that the decisions we make can affect other peoples lives, and that all of our lives are connected in some way.

The Connection of All People

          People do not realize their significance and their actions that affect other people’s lives. The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom shows how people are connected to one other. In the story, Eddie meets Joseph Corvelzchik in heaven and he tells him “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 means that everyone is connected through their decisions and impacts each other lives.  The choices of other people and sacrifice play a big role in changing other lives.

          In the story, Eddie meets Ruby, the person the pier is named after. She later tells him that if it wasn’t for her husband, there wouldn’t be a pier. And if there was not pier, Eddie would not be working there. This is an example of how people’s choices can later affect people in life. The decision of Ruby and her husband gave Eddie his job and gave him a place to grow up.

          The second person Eddie meets in heaven is the Captain. He sacrificed his life to save Eddie and the others in the truck. According to the story “The land mine exploded instantly…It blew the Captain 20 feet in the air and split him into pieces…” If nobody had went out to check for the land mines, everybody in the transporter would have been killed. This decision extended the rest of their lives and helped them get back to safety.

          The people Eddie meets in heaven and their encounters in real life are examples on how people affect other lives. All the accidents Eddie has prevented by fixing rides, kept all the people who rode them safe. He affects everyone at the pier and we also make countless decisions that affect the people around us everyday.

Tangled Together

“You can no more separate one life from another than you can separate wind from a breeze.” means simply that we are all connected, through every decision no matter how insignificant it may seem. For example, Eddie’s life is connected to a boy that once visited the amusement park. He chose to put his car keys in the pocket of a jacket that was tied around his waist. It fell out during one of the rides and hit a cable wire that gradually ripped over time. Eventually, the wire snapped. This seemingly small decision caused Eddie to lose his Earthly being.

Another example would be Eddie’s captain. In the story, he saved Eddie from burning in a fire as he chased after what he assumed to be someone stuck in the flames. His captain made the call to shoot Eddie in the knee as to get him out of the fire. Afterwards, he chose to go ahead of Eddie and the others to see if it was safe to continue down the road. He ended up dying in an explosion. Their lives are undoubtedly connected in many more ways than one. If his captain had not shot Eddie, there was a possibility that Eddie could have died and there was a slight chance that his captain would have survived in his stead.

Every Action or Decision has Purpose Towards the Future

       Within each day, a person is often faced with decisions. Whether minor or major, the outcome of these decisions will determine many factors of the future. Each action has a reaction. In the book, The Five People You Meet in Heaven, the main character, Eddie, passes away. In attempts to save a small child from a falling cart in the amusement park he worked at for decades, an awful mistake occurred, causing his death. Based on this story, when you pass and go to Heaven, you meet five important figures in your lifetime. After arriving in Heaven, Eddie meets Joseph Corvelzichik, also known as The Blue Man.

     Even though he was never aware of it, The Blue Man played a huge role in Eddie’s life. Many years before his death, Eddie ran after a ball that had rolled onto the street. What he didn’t know was that The Blue Man, at that exact time, almost hit Eddie with his vehicle. Instead, The Blue Man swerved out of the way, saving him. A short time after that, The Blue Man’s weak heart could not handle the adrenaline he dealt with after the incident and died of a heart attack. Eddie was responsible for his death. This is an example of freewill and fate. It was freewill because Eddie had the free decision to take a risk and get his ball. It was fate because God planned that both people would cross paths in that time at that place.

 When Eddie was told the truth, he was distraught. That was then when The Blue Man told him this, “That there are no random acts. That we are all connected. That you can no more separate one life from another than you can a breeze from the wind.” This means that even sometimes when we believe that “…such things are random…there is a balance to it all. One withers, another grows. Birth and death are part of a whole.” When tragic events happen, it all comes down to the actions, decisions, and the freewill of some that lead up to the fate of others.

     

Life Changing Decisions

Life Changing Decisions

       The prompt "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 everyone has a reason to do something and that ends up affecting someone else. The book, The Five People You Meet In Heaven, by Mitch Albom, shows this by taking you through Eddie's memories of childhood, adulthood, and old age. When Eddie was a child he ran in front of a car to get a ball. The man slammed on his brakes, and later died from a heart attack. The "Blue Man" in heaven tells Eddie, "' That death doesn't just take someone it misses someone else, and in the small distance between being taken and being missed lives are changed.'" If the "Blue Man" had never slammed on his brakes Eddie would be dead, but Eddie went to the Blue Man's funeral instead of the "Blue Man" going to Eddie's funeral.
       The second person, was Eddie's captain in the war. He gave up his life and sacrificed himself to save his fellow men. The captain says, "' You just don't know it yet I gained something too...I got to keep my promise. I didn't leave you behind.'" He kept his promise and didn't leave his men behind. He sacrificed his life so Eddie and the others could live to see another day.
       When Eddie felt like his old self, he learned from a little girl his reason for being alive and his impact on others' life. When Eddie asks "'Why?'" he was supposed to be at Ruby Pier, she replies, "' Children...You keep them safe.'" Eddie thought his reason for being at Ruby Pier was because of his father. But, Tala says he was there to keep children safe. Eddie affected the children and everyone who went to Ruby Pier by keeping them safe. His reasons for staying affected others just like others actions affected him and his life.

Heaven intersects

            Destiny. Fate. Providence. Whether we chose to believe it, everything happens for a reason. When reading The Five People You Meet in Heaven you really start to understand life and how the choices you make can affect yourself but also the people around you. A quote from the five people you meet in heaven states, “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.” To me, the quote from The Blue Man means that nothing in this world just effects one person, no matter what there will be a cause and effect affecting someone else. What I chose to do today could consequently affect someone’s tomorrow.

            The first person Eddie meets in heaven is a man named Joseph Corvelszchik, also referred to as The Blue Man because of his skin color caused by an overdose on silver nitrate. Eddie remembers the Blue Man from his childhood, back when Ruby Pier had a freak show. The Blue Man then explains that because Eddie ran into the street chasing after his ball when he was a kid The Blue Man had to quickly brake in order to miss Eddie and died of a heart attack because the shock distracted him so much.  When Eddie learns that he was a contributor in the death of The Blue Man he was in shock. The Blue Man goes on to tell him that all lives are connected and intersect in one-way or another. Everything has a positive and negative reaction resulting in some people dying so others could live. Even though Eddie did not know Joseph Corvrlszchik before meeting him in heaven, they were connected his whole life.

            In conclusion, everyone views stories and novels in different ways. The way I choose to view it is as a man who learns about accidental consequence. When reading I learned so much about connection and love. Weather we chose to belive it, everything happens for a reason. Heaven intersects.

The Affects of Life

     Decisions made today will somehow change the lives of others tomorrow. Each and every decision you make can change the lives of others around you. Every choice has an impact. It may be big or small but, it affects life. Any person can affect you or the people around you. We may have different paths but everyone is connected in some way. In the novel, "The Five People You Meet in Heaven", the first person Eddie meets is the Blue Man. His name is Joseph Corvelzchik and he died saving Eddie's life. He shows Eddie how one little thing can change somebody's life.
     During their visit Joseph 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." When the Blue Man explains his death, disappointment is Eddie's first reaction. He realizes that the Blue Man died after their short encounter on Earth. Although Eddie never met the Blue Man, he forever changed his life with a very small connection.
      Joseph goes on to explain how no act is random and that everyone is connected. Eddie's choice to run out in the street to retrieve a ball ultimately cost the Blue Man his life. Yet the Blue Man's choice to prevent hitting a boy in the street saved Eddie's . "We think such things are random. But there is a balance to it all. One withers, another grows. Birth and death are part of a whole." Every decision we make affects life in some way. Decisions made today will somehow change the lives of others tomorrow.

Chains of Life

       In the story, The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Eddie, has to meet five people that had an influence on his life. The first person Eddie had to meet in heaven was a man named Joseph Corvelzchik, or the Blue Man. Joseph told Eddie “ 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 that no matter how big or how small the act is, one decision can not only alter your life, but every life around you. It also means that there is always a plan. God has a plan for each of us, even if we cannot see it.

       When Eddie was speaking to the Blue Man , Eddie learned that when he was a child, his actions resulted in the Blue Man dying. Even though Eddie never meant to kill the Blue Man, when he ran out in the street for the ball, that action caused the Blue Man to swerve, to have a heart attack and ultimately to die. If the Blue Man had not seen Eddie in time, he could have killed Eddie instead. However, this was not God’s plan for either of them, so he saved Eddie's life.

       Later in in Eddie’s journey, he had met this woman that he had never met before. Eddie found out that the woman's name was Ruby, and that her and her husband had built Ruby Pier. Eddie had never known this woman, but she had a major influence on his life. Without Ruby and her husband building Ruby Pier, Eddie and his father wouldn’t have worked there. Which would have made not only Eddie’s life change drastically, but it would have changed his whole families life.

       The chains of life are what bond everyone together. No life is more  or less than any other, just like links in a chain.  

Everything happens for a reason

The "Five People You Meet in Heaven " is based the life and death of a man named Eddie. When Eddie had passed away he went through a series of people he had known , impacted , or people who had impacted him.Some of the people had shown him things that he had not realized on earth . All the five people showed him the way that he was impacted by their decisions in life . This book shows us that we have to be careful of our actions because we may never know the way it can affect the world around us .

No Random Acts

                What can you do to make someone’s day? It doesn’t even have to be someone you know. You could smile at a little girl walking down the street, and it could make her entire day because you don’t know how tough her life is at home. She’s lucky to get attention at home and happy that you smiled at her. She could be prompted to do the same exact thing. Be nice to somebody else just as you were in smiling at her. Then somebody else is nice because of that little girl, and so it continues. As you can see, there are no random acts. The book The Five People You Meet in Heaven says, “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.” In this scenario, you were meant to smile at that little girl. There are no random acts, and all acts affect almost everyone because we are all connected.

                “What goes around comes around.” Have you ever heard this saying? This is what I’m talking about. You smile at that little girl “What goes around comes around,” and now someone is returning the five dollars that fell out of your pocket. In The Five People You Meet in Heaven the main character Eddie was nice to a little girl and made a rabbit out of pipe cleaners for her. “What goes around comes around,” and,” That there are no random acts.” His fifth person he meets in heaven, the little girl, said that she pulled him into heaven to keep him safe.

                The fact that there are no random acts is what connects us all. In the book, if Ruby and her husband had decided to not build Ruby Pier, then Eddie wouldn’t have had a place to grow up and have a job. Except for his time during the war, Eddie spent his entire life at Ruby Pier. Also, Eddie had never met Ruby or her husband, yet they still had a major impact on Eddie’s life.

                In the movie Epic by DreamWorks, they say, ”Many leaves. One tree.” We are all individuals, yet connected by something much bigger than ourselves. This definitely relates to, “That there are no random acts. That we are all connected.” When one leaf falls off the tree, it’s so that another leaf can thrive in its place. The book says, “We think such things are random. But there is a balance to it all. One withers, another grows.” Because we are all connected, it is important that we “Think before we act.” If our actions can affect almost everyone, don’t you want to have a positive impact on this world? We are all connected by the not-so-random acts.

A Room Full of People

     In the book The Five People You Meet in Heaven the main character, Eddie, meets five people in heaven that teach him five different lessons about his life. One of the lessons Eddie learns is," 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." Ultimately this is stating that everyone you meet and everything you do in life has a purpose, nothing happens randomly. We are all connected and significant to others even if we do not know it. Eddie thought during his life he did not do or accomplish anything, but later on he realized his life was much more important than he thought.

     While in heaven, Eddie met people he knew and also people he had not met during his lifetime. Even though Eddie had not met these people, they still had a huge impact in his life. For example, Eddie was confused at first when he met his fifth person, Tala. As Eddie talked to her, he soon realized that she was the figure he had seen in the fire at the village during the war. She tells Eddie that his life was not lost or empty, that even though he did not save her from the fire, he saved every single child that went on the rides at the pier. Tala tells Eddie," You keep them safe. You make good for me," as a way to make him understand that his life and what he did in it was important. 

     Life is like a room full of people, some people you notice while others notice you. As you are standing in that room full of people, your life, the ones you don't care to look at can be the ones who only look at you. You may not know the people that impact your life the most. As the quote from the book says, " That there are no random acts," everything happens for a certain reason. Some people you know and some you don't are the reason your life is the way it is. 

No Accidents

            “The Five People You Meet in Heaven” explains that when you die, you go to heaven and meet five people. Each of those people teach you a lesson. In the book, the main character, Eddie, is taught a lesson from each of his five people. His first person tells him, “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 that every action happens for a reason, and that what happens to you affects everyone, because everyone is connected.

            First, “That there are no random acts,” means that every action happens for a reason. “The Five People You Meet in Heaven” states,” ‘What good came from your death?’ ‘You lived.’” The passage also states, “‘When your colleague falls ill and you do not. We think such things are random. But there is a balance to it all. One withers, another grows.’” It wasn’t random that the guy died. He died so Eddie could live.

            Next, “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 that what happens to you affects everyone, because everyone is connected. The story states, “’ Some did not even know me well, yet they came…It is because the human spirit knows, deep down, that all lives intersect.’” The story also states, “’ that death doesn’t just take someone, it misses someone else, and in the small distance between being taken and being missed, lives are changed.’” The people felt like they needed to go to the funeral, because they know they are all connected. It could have been them that died.  

Two Sides to Every Coin

Two Sides to Every Coin

            People often say there are two sides to every story. The narrator of the story says “Take one story, viewed from two different angles.” I viewed this statement as connected consequences.

            As there are two sides to every coin there are two sides of every story. While Eddie was meeting the Blue Man in heaven he opened Eddie’s mind to the day when his birthday gift, a baseball, got thrown into the street. At the time the only consequence Eddie faced was having to go into the street to grab his baseball. Running out in front of a car, while the other side of the story has a completely different consequence, death. The Blue Man, who was driving the car Eddie ran out in front, slams on his brakes to keep from hitting the kid. After regaining control of the car he is full of adrenaline which makes his feeble heart beat at a rapid speed. This in turn causes the Blue Man to have a collision with the rear of a parked truck and die on site of the crash. If Eddie hadn’t been the cause of the Blue Man’s sudden death, he would never have met him in heaven or learned a valuable lesson.

            Another example from the story starts when, Nicky, a boy who just recently got his driving license, went to Ruby Pier with his friends where he lost his car key. I’m sure when Eddie heard the news of Nicky’s lost key he didn’t think it would mean himself dying. In conclusion we are simply all connected no matter what we may think is just a harmless act.

            Connected consequences leads mostly to bad things happening in this book, but in reality good can come from being connected in the real word to people who were caught in the cross fire. Being connected just as a breeze and the wind are can be very difficult. Eddie learned this lesson from the various people he meets in heaven.

Lives Intertwined

                The word connection is defined as a relationship in which a person, thing, or idea is linked or associated with something else. The idea that all lives are connected is a widely debated one that varies from person to person. The book The Five People You Meet In Heaven is based around the central idea that you cannot separate one life from another.             

                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,” is used by the Blue Man to explain to Eddie that the small event in his life affected the Blue Man’s life greatly. Eddie lived his whole life with the belief that he never greatly affected anyone's life. When Eddie is taken through this chain of events in his afterlife he realizes that he was wrong. The book further explains that Eddie, a seemingly insignificant person in life, has an impact on plenty of people who he didn’t even know’s lives. This leads the reader to understand that nothing happens without consequence. Whether the consequence is placed upon you or someone else is believed to be upon the universe to decide. Therefore, everyone and thing in the universe has a relationship with each other. Every action whether small or large has a reaction somewhere else in the world.

                In conclusion, there are many signs that point to all lives being connected in some way, shape, or form. All lives are modeled to fit one another whether it be relevant to both people in the chain or not.

A Maze of Connections

      As we live our lives we go through a journey of twist and turns with paths that have people at every corner. These people can change our lives without us even knowing it and we can do the same to them. In The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom, the Blue Man says, “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.” Our lives are connected to so many others and we could easily do one thing that can create a ripple in others life. We may not realize it but these upsets in other peoples’ lives are going on all around us. So we should be careful with what we say or do with others lives because it could just come back on us.

     The Five People You Meet in Heaven, really touches on the thought that what we do in our lives not only affects us, but also others around us. From the story it reads, “They were there, or would be there because of the simple, mundane things Eddie had done in his life, the accidents he had prevented, the rides he had kept safe, the unnoticed turns he had affected every day.” Eddie thought he had done nothing worthwhile in his life, but what he didn’t noticed was that he had keep so many young children safe. Lots of times we may do things that can have positive or negative consequences on not only us but others too but for some reason we don’t even seen notice this happening.

    Our lives are like a maze of connections with others running around looking for a way out and it can be hard to see that sometimes we hit a dead end. Sometimes when we hit a dead end and we don’t know why but it can be because of the people in our lives. Nothing is ever a coincidence and so when people come into our lives they may cause hurt and their most likely a lesson. Others can be a positive life lesson but all in all people will come into your life no matter what. It’s amazing to see how everyone is connected to each other in this life and the next.