When I was growing up, my father said something to me I will never forget, "Son when you were born, you cried while the world rejoiced. Live your life in such a way that when you die the world cries while you rejoice". We live in an age when we have forgotten what life is all about. We can easily put a person on the Moon, but we have trouble walking across the street to meet a new neighbour. We can fire a missile across the world with pinpoint accuracy, but we have trouble keeping a date with our children to go to the library. We have e-mail, fax machines and digital phones so that we can stay connected and yet we live in a time where human beings have never been less connected. We have lost touch with our humanity. We have lost touch with our purpose. We have lost sight of the things that matter the most.
What does the line, "live your life in such a way that when you die the world cries while you rejoice" indicate about the kind of life that the father wanted his son to live ?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → A life of good deeds
When a baby is born, the baby cries and the family rejoices. The father reverses this: he wants the world to cry when his son dies, which happens only when people lose someone who did them good, while the son himself can rejoice at the end because he lived well. So he is asking his son to live a life of good deeds that will be missed by others.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: A life of selfishness — Incorrect. Contradicted: Nobody mourns a selfish person; a selfish life is the opposite of what the father wants.
Option 3: A life of fun and adventure — Incorrect. Not mentioned: the line is about how other people feel about the son, not about enjoying himself.
Option 4: A life of pain and humiliation — Incorrect. Contradicted: Humiliation is the feeling of being made to look foolish or ashamed. A person who lived such a life would have nothing to rejoice about at the end.
Example: Losing the match by forty runs was a humiliation for the team.