Video Reaction - Tuesdays with Morrie (1999)

Video Reaction

The purpose of this paper is to give a reaction to the video Tuesdays with Morrie (1999), explain my initial reaction and feelings, evaluate touch therapy in the care of elderly clients, examine spirituality associated with aging, and assess the positive attributes of aging.

Initial Reaction

My initial reaction was a plethora of emotions, sadness, introspection and inspiration. As I watched this video, I empathized with both Mitch and Morrie. Sadly, Morrie was slowing dying from degenerative Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), yet, he viewed life with passion and awe, embracing everything life offered including the good and bad. Although he allowed himself a morning time of self-pity, he did not allow it to consume the rest of his day. Conversely, Mitch lived a physically, healthy life, filled with success, opportunities, and even love; yet, he was unhappy and dead on the inside. Chasing success, fame, affirmation and money, becomes meaningless pursuits if you have no peace and purpose on the inside. Morrie, always a teacher, helped Mitch learn that giving to the community, devotion and love created a sense of purpose and meaning to life (Forte, Winfrey, & Jackson, 1999).

Watching Tuesdays with Morrie forced me to look inside myself and parallel my life to Mitch’s life. Do I need to learn the same lessons as Mitch? In my opinion, life is a school. Sometimes, we, as individuals, learn a lesson or take a test and get it right the first, second or third time. Other times, we practice a long time before we pass a life test. I have those in my family whom it required a lifetime before they learned to forgive or apologize for wrongs they committed. For Morrie, one of the most difficult lessons he learned was forgiving his father. As for me, forgiving my alcoholic father is still an ongoing life test I keep trying to pass, and watching Tuesdays with Morrie has inspired me to expend more effort in trying (Forte et al., 1999).

Touch and Intimacy

Many elderly experience touch deprivation (Potter, Perry, Stocker, & Hall, 2013). Touch not only promotes well-being and relaxation, but decreases anxiety, reduces pain, and positively affects depressive behavior (Anderson & Taylor, 2011). Morrie experienced touch deprivation as a child, but he thrived on touch as an adult. Contrarily, I believe Mitch, as evidenced by his uncomfortableness when Morrie hugged him, was deprived of touch, or possibly afraid of affection as the culture connotes touch with sexuality and possible abuse (Ingersoll et al., 2012). However, with each visit, Mitch learned to reciprocate Morrie’s affectionate touch. At the end of the movie, Mitch initiated a hug with sobs and a tight embrace (Forte et al., 1999).

Touch can be positive or negative depending on the client’s cultural background. Therefore, cultural