In heaven, Eddie meets Ruby

In heaven, Eddie meets Ruby

In heaven, Eddie meets Ruby. Ruby is the owner of Ruby Pier, Eddie’s workplace. Ruby is among the five people Eddie is expected to meet in heaven and performs her responsibility as revealed in the text. Eddie is filled with anger and hatred for his father. Eddie believes that his father forces him to lead the life he goes through, such as his career and vocation as a worker in Pier and in shaping his life. Eddie, however, does not understand the reason for his father’s character, nor the intention his father has on him. He believes that his father should allow him to do whatever pleases him. Ruby comes to the aid of Eddie’s hardened heart. She inflicts in Eddie the need for forgiveness. According to Ruby, true peace can only be found by letting go of what troubles us. Ruby intends to lead Eddie into finding inner peace by forgiving his father. Ruby’s teaching to Eddie highlights the need to let go of negativity, especially in one’s career, and focus on providing service to people in your career. It encourages the habit of realizing the true meaning of a person’s vocation not only in terms of self-interest but in need to help others, as the true calling to a profession. Most of the time, we regret our positions at our places of work, not being able to realize that through accepting our situations, our perspectives on the careers we undertake might change completely.

Ruby’s assignment in heaven is to care for the people affected by the functioning of Ruby Piers and, most notably, its misfortunes. In response to her duty, Ruby decides on helping Eddie, who had been affected by his presence at the Pier. Ruby leads Eddie through the way of forgiveness, and he ends up forgiving his father. Eddie’s father, also a worker in the Pier, is being affected positively by Ruby’s actions towards Eddie. By being forgiven by Eddie, his father also gains peace of mind while in heaven. Ruby succeeds in letting Eddie know that his father was not as bad as he had thought since he had caused his death while saving Mickey by contracting pneumonia. Ruby also explains the harm of anger and hatred by relating it to a blade that harms us. She says, “But hatred is a curved blade. And the harm we do, we do to ourselves.” (Albom 141) This story helps Eddie in forgiving his father and Ruby in achieving her purpose of caring.