In his conclusion, Mitch is expressing his regret at not going to visit Morrie sooner. He's so thankful that he made the choice to be with Morrie in his final weeks, but recognizes that he should have made the choice sooner. Moral of the story: We can only benefit from making the right choices, and we never get anything out of procrastinating.

There's just something about friendship that won't go away. Mitch is saying that when you have a person like Morrie in your life, they don't just leave. A true friend teaches you something valuable about yourself and about what love should be like, and their impact lingers whether they're around any longer ot not.

Mitch eloquently sums up exactly what the whole student/teacher/education ordeal is all about. Each of us has the potential to be glittering, like that rough stone. A teacher helps to polish our minds, makes us into what we are capable of being. Part of being human is being that rough stone and needing somebody to just come along and shine us up.