I’ve been in the strange position of being offered commiserations on the death of Steve Jobs, which is weird because I am neither related to him nor particularly caught up in any cult of celebrity.
Genius is an overused word but, in the case of Steve Jobs, I think it applies. In the fields of technology and art, he made a difference. He changed the world. And, despite trying very hard, I can’t find any products that better his vision yet. That isn’t to say that Apple is perfect, of course, but they’re a lot closer to nirvana than any other product from any competing organisation. On the whole, people who disagree with this statement haven’t tried to live with an Apple product for a month and, in doing so, give it a fair trial.
Would I want to have had Steve Jobs’ life? No. Do I want to be the next Steve Jobs? Also no. One of the saddest things that anyone has ever said to me was that they ‘wished they could have my life’. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. Don’t get me wrong – I like my life. I love my life. Most of the time it seems to come up aces, and that suits me very well. But it only suits me. It’s made to measure. Steve Jobs’ life was made to measure for Steve Jobs and the only person who could live it was him.
It is tragic that Steve Jobs died young and at the peak of his powers, but I feel that we should celebrate his life and his achievements and remember that his influence will be with us for a long time, and possibly for centuries. I am also happy for him, that he has now been put out of his pain. I can’t, and don’t want to, imagine what it must be like to live with cancer for eight years. I feel desperately sorry for his family and for his friends.
I don’t want to seem ungrateful though – I am genuinely happy to hear from you all, but a simple hello is sufficient. And telling me your news of course – especially telling me your news. Please offer me your commiserations if you hear that any of my family or friends have died – then I will be in need of them, and very likely in an extremely untogether place.