Gratitude

I attended a lecture by Dr. Oliver Sacks in Boston, 1989. Luckily enough, I was introduced to this amazing man. A year later when he was in San Francisco for a large speaking engagement on Migraines, I met him again. This time we had lunch in his private suite and never have I ever been so thrilled and felt so welcome. He was a gentle person with an ability to speak to anyone on any subject. I was so lucky.Just before his sad passing, I read his autobiography, “On The Move”. It truly portrayed his gentle, worldly, yet sophisticated self. I learned more about him then and was more intrigued and fascinated by his writings. “Gratitude” is a short read, but a succinct and gratifying one. Each of the four essays is carefully written with the Dr. Sacks earnest and honest soul baring itself with such honest emotion, it’s wonderful and satisfying to read. I’ve read it many times now and always marvel at his ability to easily convey his emotions and feelings. It’s a true gift and a gentle reminder to the reader that gratitude is very important and a great attribute to put things in perspective.

This is a collection of essays at the end of Oliver Sack's life. The essays are well-written, thought-provoking and meaningful. Oliver Sacks left much to us in his life's work, as well as his musings on life itself.

I usually love Oliver Sacks' books, most dealing with his adventures as a neurologist. My favorite remains, "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat." That volume includes a personal recollection by Sacks himself, dealing with when he woke in hospital and tried to throw the seeming foreign leg out of his bed, only to learn that it was his own! He was a masterful real-life story-teller.For some reason I just can't put my finger on, I found this final reflection to be a bit lacking. Certainly what the other reviewers have said in praise of it are true, but it still left me feeling something was missing. In reflecting, what I found was missing was that in the midst of his four essays, all remembrances of things past, he really does not emphasize his gratitude. It is more like he was saying, "Well, this happened and it changed my life." But as an existential-phenomenologist, I guess I was looking more for what Sacks meant by "gratitude." He never really does say.Still, it is a lovely farewell from a very interesting and gifted man, for whose life and contributions I am grateful. Good, quick read.

The following paragraph is the single best excerpt of text I've ever read:“There will be no one like us when we are gone, but then there is no one like anyone else, ever. When people die, they cannot be replaced. They leave holes that cannot be filled, for it is the fate—the genetic and neural fate—of every human being to be a unique individual, to find his own path, to live his own life, to die his own death. I cannot pretend I am without fear. But my predominant feeling is one of gratitude. I have loved and been loved; I have been given much and I have given something in return; I have read and traveled and thought and written. I have had an intercourse with the world, the special intercourse of writers and readers. Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking animal, on this beautiful planet, and that in itself has been an enormous privilege and adventure.”― Oliver Sacks, Gratitude

This admittedly very slender volume - a collection of 4 essays (although "Meditations" might be better description) is genuinely moving.Whilst this collection of essays is a slim volume is not in question - that it provides insights into some of the most sacred of mysteries is also not in question.That we shall all die is without question - that we shall all know, in advance of this event, that we shall die "soon" is not guaranteed and provokes a series of important questions such as: What is it to have a good life?Oliver Sacks provides his readers with much insight into what is it to have this "good life as well as to experience facing death and accepting ones fate with "Gratitude" not bitterness. As always Sacks draws on the personal for his writing however these 4 essays are, by far, the most personal of all his writings and provide an interesting coda and counterpoint to the second (and final) instalment of his autobiography "On the Move".Sacks' "Gratitude" leaves the reader with tears of both joy and sorrow - the joy that we have known him through his writing and the sense of wonder he conveys and tears of sadness for what we have lost.A truly beautiful addition to his life's work.

A few nuggets of useful perspective, but otherwise not useful to me.I read more than average on the general subject so maybe others with less experience would find this volume useful.Bottom Line: it is as advertised, but not a good value for me.

Dr. Ollie Sacks was a wonderful human being. I am happy that these writings were compiled, but sad that he is no longer with us. I learned so much about life and compassion from him. He will be missed.

This book will be one that I go to time and time again for inspiration.

fantastic book of short essays. a very beautiful book and lovely read

This is the best book to understand how time plays its role in our life. In this book, Oliver sacks express his thoughts during his last days. The four essays in this book will make you reflect on your life. He beautifully narrates how time flies away before we notice. He briefly mentioned that at the 80th year of his life he feels as if the life has just begun when it was almost over.In the book, he expresses his gratitude towards his life. The precise words in which he appreciated his life are as follows,' I have loved and been loved; I have been given much and I have given something in return; I have read and travelled and thought and written. I have had an intercourse with the world, the special intercourse of writers and readers. Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking animal, on this beautiful planet, and that in itself has been an enormous privilege and adventure. '

It's a while since I read it, but i remember being totally satisfied by it and a little disappointed that it finished so quickly. It contributed to my journey in the Way, helping me to be a little more content with this increasing emptiness, of being outside the social structure which is where we are all slowly headed. There is so much to be discovered in this empty aloneness, and so much to contribute from here, that can't be appreciated at all form within the normal social structure.

Questo libricino prezioso per veste tipografica e contenuti e' un decimo dell'autobiografia di Oliver Sachs, uscita circa un anno fa, poco prima della morte del grande scienziato-scrittore, eppure nei suoi brevi articoli, pubblicati sul new york times, contiene il nucleo dell'opera maggiore: la curiosita' scientifica che lo ha sempre guidato. Scopertosi malato terminale per metastasi epatiche del melanoma oculare trattato nel 2005, non ha rinunciato a combattere, si e' sottoposto ad embolizzazione epatica, che gli ha regalato sei mesi di vita piena, l'inevitabile recidiva, l'immunoterapia, altri pochi mesi mesi rubati alla morte e dedicati alle sue ricerche e meditazioni, non autocommiserazione ma spavalda battaglia contro il destino inesorabile combattuta con lo stoicismo e la curiosita' di un grande filosofo greco. Questa e' la lezione che ci lascia questo titano che ha sfidato gli dei del conformismo, della religione prefabbricata, della scienza al servizio del profitto. Resta il rammarico per me vecchio chirurgo di come nel 2005 non gli abbiano enucleato l'occhio invaso dal melanoma anziche' trattarlo con laser e radioterapia che l'hanno comunque privato della funzione visiva, sarebbe rimasto benche' monoculus rex in quest'orbe caecorum!