ShmoopTube

00:03

Do not go gentle into that good night…a la Shmoop.

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I think there are three things we can all agree upon.

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First…I don't care who you are or where you come from…if you're pulling toilet paper [Man looks angry]

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under rather than over, you're wrong.

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Second…Lucky Charms needs to produce a marshmallow-only option. [Girl sat with a bowl of marshmallows]

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Seriously, those toasted oat pieces are harshing the magically delicious buzz. [Woman looks disgusted]

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And third…death is not good.

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It’s awful.

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It’s mysterious.

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It’s inevitable.

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…Actually, when you put it like that, it kinda sounds like the Alvin and the Chipmunks

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movie franchise.

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And like Alvin and the Chipmunks, we’ve all been affected by it. [The Grim Reaper walking to 'Alvin and the Chipmunks The Squeakuel' at the theater]

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I remember when my father was dying.

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It was a really rough time for me. [Dylan Thomas in a hospital]

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Every day was a countdown to never seeing him again. [Dylan crossing days off on a calendar]

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He was old and sick, and the end was near.

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So, what did I do?

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Did I just sit back and cry while he withered away? [A tear runs down Dylan's face]

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No!

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…Well…a little.

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Did I buy him a “get well” card with a picture of a wiener dog in a hospital gown [Dylan bringing the card to his father]

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on the front?

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No.

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But now I wish I had.

01:00

That sounds doggone hilarious.

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So what'd I actually do?

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I wrote him a totally awesome, inspirational, pump-up poem. [Dylan writing at a desk]

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It was sort of like Eye of the Tiger, except not as overplayed, and…a little more…deathy.

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I basically said, "look old man…things aren’t looking so hot right now.

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You’re sick.

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You’re weak.

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But are you just gonna take it?

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Just lie down and die?

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No way, Jose."

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You can’t just fade weakly into that good night. [Dylan's father next to the Grim Reaper]

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Psst….that good night is a metaphor for death…pretty good stuff, huh?

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I told him to keep fighting, and get as much out of the day as possible. [Dylan's father wearing boxing gloves]

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Look, we all know that death is inevitable.

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But if we want to live up to our full potential, we can’t let that change our behavior.

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That's why I told my pops to “Rage, rage against the dying of the light.” [The lights go out]

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It was kind of like that classic sports movie scene where the coach makes the player yell, [Coach talking to football players]

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“I’m a champion!

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I’m a champion!” over and over again until the viewer feels tinglies down their spine.

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Anyway…it was heartbreaking, but I knew death would get my pops sooner or later.

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I just wanted him to fight his hardest for as long as possible.

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Because when you try your hardest everyday, there’s no losing. [Dylan with his father in a boxing ring]

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Or…something like that.

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I'm just paraphrasing sports movies, now.

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So remember when people say ‘never give up on your dreams,’ that doesn’t mean [Girl asleep in bed]

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they’re telling you to keep sleeping.

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They’re telling you to keep on raging 'til you're in the ground.

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Not a bad lesson, eh?

02:13

You taking notes there sports movies?

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