There’s a very good chance we won’t be seeing Alex Trebek for that much longer, and as crass as that might sound it’s very real since the man is in his late 70s and he knows he’s not doing well despite the fact that he’s been as brave as he possibly can be with his cancer battle. Not a lot of people can come back the way he has and put on the same show that he’s been doing for so long with as much stoicism as Alex has displayed. But even legends have limits as Trebek was brought almost to tears by the answer given during Final Jeopardy one episode as a devoted fan and player reminded him just how much he meant to the people who have been watching him for so long was was reported by Nate Day of Fox News. Some might be cynical and say that it wan’t the right time even though the announcement was built from good intentions, but those that can’t help but be touched by the contestant’s willingness to express his feelings towards one of the greatest game show hosts in history.
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There are those that might say it’s odd to venerate a man that’s been a game show host for so long when there are so many others out there that are fighting similar if not worse battles but aren’t given attention because they’re not on TV. But with the cynicism set aside it’s very easy to admire this man since he has been on TV for a very long time and he’s been the same person he is now for a lot of years. The fact that he’s stuck with this show for so long is very impressive and the fact that when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer back in March, as Lisa Respers France of CNN and many others reported, of this year he still came back to the show. Tell me, how many people would do this after being given the diagnosis that he received? You might be right in stating that some folks would indeed go back to work if they could manage and get back on the metaphorical horse and keep going, but this was an announcement that shook a lot of people, and was even more surprising when he announced his intentions to keep going with the show. So far he’s beaten odds that no one in their right mind would take given that they were so low that death seemed as though it was a foregone conclusion. But he still went back to work, to the fans, and to the show that had been so good to him for so long.
At this point however the illness is starting to wear pretty hard on him as during an interview he was having trouble speaking due to sores in his mouth that had been caused by chemotherapy. While on TV it doesn’t look as though Alex has aged all that much it is evident every time a news report comes out that he’s fading, and that he knows it. At this time Alex isn’t afraid of dying as E.J. Mundell of WebMD states, he’s said as much and is well aware that the inevitable day is coming. But he’s also stated that he has lived a good life, a full life, and there’s nothing to be afraid of in that. If there’s any real reason to be impressed by this man, that’s it. He knows the end is coming and he knows that one of these days the last chapter of his life will be written, but he’s not looking ahead with fear. Instead, whether he’s ready for it not, he’s simply aware that it will happen and that there’s nothing to keep it at bay any longer. The reasons for the outpouring of emotions from the crowd and the contestants are obvious, Alex Trebek is a man that has earned the admiration and respect of a great many people not just because of his dedication to the show and the fans for so long, but because he’s actually embraced an ideal of life that a lot of people don’t want to think about or own up to at times. One day life will end for every person, but the question is, will every person have lived a full life?
The answer of course is that no, not everyone will. The final day can come at any time for a lot of people and it might come before we think we’re ready. But when it comes to Alex Trebek the ideal is that fearing that your life could end is no way to live. Look at it this way, ever since being diagnosed with cancer he’s known that one of these days his number will be up, but he’s kept on with what he loves to do all the same. Life is to be lived after all, not squandered in fear of what might be lost.
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