Further Ruminations on Steve Jobs

Over the past few days, the internet has been flooded with blog posts, news articles, obituaries, Facebook status updates, and tweets all devoted to the life and times of Steve Jobs. The Apple store closest to my home has indefinitely turned its Apple light off in the store front, and a few bouquets sit beneath it in a tribute to the late innovator. I came across a post on Facebook this morning that was along the lines of, "He's not Mother Teresa, stop acting as if he did great things for humanity." It wasn't in those exact words, but that was the gist of it. I have to disagree with the sentiment expressed in that post.

We each have certain strengths that allow us to make a great impact on the world. Some of us are compassionate beyond the normal scope of other human beings. Some of us are capable of making great strides in science, even when confined to a wheelchair and unable to speak without the aid of a specialized computer (Stephen Hawking, anyone?) Still others look at the world and see the beauty in it at even the smallest level, and spend their lives photographing ecosystems around the world so that Johnny down the street can open a National Geographic and understand just how diverse our humble planet is.

Steve Jobs was not a compassionate individual. He was witty and innovative, yes. He saw the world through different eyes than you or me, but he didn't save thousands of orphans throughout his lifetime. Due to his desire to remain private, he avoided making large donations to charitable organizations even though we all know how capable he was of sparing some change. Still, he changed the world. His impact on the world has been enormous and he led the way to how we communicate today. He was insightful and really knew how to be in control of his own life and the decisions he made regarding it. He steered his own ship, so to speak. He once said, "I look in the mirror every morning and ask myself, ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’  And when the answer has been no for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something." Wouldn't it be wonderful if we all lived that way?

The point is, he knew how to live his life and he could teach us all a thing or two about living ours. Life is short. We all know that, but we're so damn busy just getting by that we forget to live it. We forget to do those things that we're really good at and that truly make us happy (because those things usually go hand in hand.) I'm glad to say that as busy and crazy as life has been for me for the past few months, I wouldn't change a thing. I wake up each day and am happy to be where I'm at, doing what I'm doing. 

I think the world is well aware that Steve Jobs was no Mother Teresa. However, we don't have to save the celebration of life only for those that physically help others. In a way, Steve Jobs devoted his life to others as much as Mother Teresa did. Sure, it was in a different capacity and the end results were very different, but each of them believed wholeheartedly in what they were doing. They each believed they were leaving the world a little better because they were in it. We should strive to live as they did. The world should be better off because each of us spent a little time here.

It's okay to mourn the loss of someone so bright and passionate. We should all be so lucky to live life half as passionately about something as he did. He once said, "I want to put a ding in the universe" and I want to wake up each day thinking the same way.