Doctors gave Carnegie Mellon Professor Randy Pausch three to six more months of "good health" when they diagnosed him with pancreatic cancer over a year ago. A month later, Pausch delivered a heartfelt public talk full of inspirational life lessons and wisdom in front of a packed crowd of CMU students, colleagues and friends.

The lecture he gave, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" wasn’t about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of reconsidering their own ambitions, of finding new ways to look at other people’s flaws, talents and feelings, and of seizing every moment (because "time is all you have…and you may find one day that you have less than you think"). He offered prescriptions for dealing with life’s most debilitating roadblocks, and celebrated mentors and protégés with an open heart.

The school shot video of Pausch's lecture and soon the footage began spreading across the internet popping up in tens of thousands of web sites. Pausch was soon receiving e-mails from all over the world. A university in India held a screening of the lecture. Hundreds of students attended, told their friends how powerful it was, and hundreds more demanded a second screening a week later.

In July, Pausch lost his battle against pancreatic cancer but the phenomenon of that afternoon talk is captured in The Last Lecture By Randy Pausch with Jeffrey Zaslow (2008 Hyperion; hardcover $21.95). The book is a written record of the elements that made his lecture so memorable.

Pausch provides answers to questions such as: If we had to vanish tomorrow, what would we want as our legacy? What does he want to impart to his three children, all under 7 years old? How does he feel about achieving one’s dreams? Pauch’s insights including his straightforward wisdom on matters of love, gratitude, loyalty, seizing each moment and surmounting the challenges he calls "brick walls."

The book is available at local bookstores or online at amazon.com, thelastlecture.com or hyperionbooks.com.

To learn more about pancreatic cancer, visit the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network website at www.pancan.org.

Claire Yezbak Fadden is the Associate Editor of LifeAfter50.com.