Fate

Agreeing with Muhammad , So far through out this book fate can be seen having a big influence. For example like Muhammad said the fact that Chick is unable and fails at killing himself lets the reader know that Chick was meant to have a more meaningful life. Chick seeing his mom can also be related to fate because she shows up at the moment that he needs her the most. One other thing that can be connected to fate might be the fact that he wasn't invited to the wedding. If he was invited to the wedding he probably wouldn't be having this life changing experience that hes having right now because he probably wouldn't have tried to commit suicide if he was invited.

I agree with both Muhammad and Irving on the presence of fate within the book. Chick should not have survived the car crash and jumping off the water tower, as the odds of a person surviving either event are very slim to none. Not only does chick survive, the only thing that he really received from the suicide attempts are bruises. This leads to the idea that fate had its' input on the events. According to fate Chick was not supposed to die at that time. Concerning the presence of Chick's mother, I believe that it is his mind reminding him of the teachings of his mother; Chick wants to be the person his mother would want him to be. Additionally, I believe that the vision of Chick's mom will cause Chick to have an epiphany, and a change in perspective that will ultimately make him a better person. Looking ahead I predict that Chick will become closer with his daughter and son-in-law and prove to them that he has become a better person.

I also agree with Muhammad, in the fact that Chick is seeing his mother for reasons. Due to my knowledge of the writing styles of Mitch Albom, (my experience coming from 5 People you Meet in Heaven,) I believe that Chick's mother is somewhat of a guardian angel, as Eddie was to that little girl at Ruby Pier. Chick's mother knows what Chick has to live for, what mistakes he has made in life, and due to a mother's instincts, she wants to fix Chick's problems. She thinks Chick won't mess up in this next chance he has to rebuild his life, and due to the fact that he was alive when the reporter in the beginning of the story is a sort of proof of my hypothesis.

I completely agree with Muhammad, I think that he was given another chance to rediscover life. Fate brought Chick back to his mothers house and to where he grew up so he can recall his life and reflect on the decisions he made that led to his downfall. I believe that his flashback are his guilt and all the pain and anger that he built up from his childhood and from his failed marriage. His mother was always a soothing and consoling character in his life and she was the only one who really understood his and was able to help him. Charley talks about how after one looses their mother the word mom leaves their vocabulary. For Chick loosing her was a lot more than that, she was very important in his life, she understood him and they were very close. I believe that Chick needs to take his life into his own hands because in the end he doesn't have anyone in his life. He needs to find meaning and a reason to keep going, he needs to find something or someone to fill the void that was created.

Realizing that fate plays a huge role in many pieces of literature, this one in particular is special because it hits close to home for some. Losing a parent in some way shape or form is difficult, and you honestly have no idea what you have until you lose it. Chick attempting to kill himself and failing both times is, hands down, fate doing it's job. To honestly be able to look back at the times she helped and stood up for him, and then all the times that he decided to stay in the shadows and not stand up for his mother is telling me that he has a lot of guilt and anger bottled up inside him, and soon it will result in him bursting.