 鲜花( 29)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed
1 u1 `6 B7 ?- g' w6 r1 z2 y" aeach morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and . e# w6 M- n9 _" w( @7 I
shaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a h6 [0 O2 M% @5 P- D( P1 X3 y
nursing home today.
G: w c1 z0 a2 ^9 T" \8 Y. |" C7 H, v/ f3 G% [
His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary.
8 u! f G$ r8 j* j% [) _After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, ( ]7 }3 q; ?% Y/ S, s: d
he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready. & _! H R, H( q4 K
: J$ P4 w; G* V- tAs he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual - P' a9 ^! I: m0 d) s0 {! C, @
description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been
& C+ f" u3 C0 Qhung on his window.
7 Q! E) `) k! E* }" `
4 [ X. O7 s# `8 Y2 H K"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having
' k8 {" J T! h, k4 P7 z' ?/ ~just been presented with a new puppy. ' h8 {1 M/ X& ~' [
5 [9 {& B+ ?" z7 @- x
"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait."
$ K; @, _/ s) z& |! h4 C$ T7 e/ P& ]' y% q5 e7 j9 ?9 Z$ X- _- ^1 m
"That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied.
0 `/ c! u0 P2 e& L2 Z; e# x. D) s) f0 i
"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my
/ z( v: m Y+ k( P5 y4 Groom or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how
8 P. |! J& P: o& U- ]' OI arrange my mind. I already decided to love it."
) M8 |+ g) y% ]9 s. C
: y3 r! s8 P$ V$ I, o6 uIt's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. * W4 ]: c! ^: s% o2 S0 q
$ j: o$ Q3 ]0 h2 {/ ?& B/ A
I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I - K# v; p3 N' Z" B* F6 h+ [
have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed
( d$ p5 D. v. c R/ J# R1 c7 Oand be thankful for the ones that do.
! J* K, b2 ?( c4 g" g, t( I: H: x/ L2 D# @
Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new
# O7 ~% N0 B+ {* dday and all the happy memories I've stored away. ' R7 F. o; v x6 W3 o' V7 V
' J6 X8 e$ }1 d4 u2 {. C* W
Just for this time in my life.
9 ? D2 ]; N; Q: i1 ~( {3 m. f# f1 V7 D
% q0 V7 w9 Y+ \, y* J4 aOld age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in.
0 ?1 k$ U$ z( T" G; f; d
$ m$ {4 H" A, B3 ~So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank
/ o4 [9 V% g: B8 @9 Kaccount of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank.
; C0 @1 L- a) r. Y$ o3 Q; BI am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
7 j' y6 q7 m+ Z* U) J# C, J' e' _; d5 ~* U5 u+ R4 ^
1. Free your heart from hatred. : C1 @: G$ s* X7 m
2. Free your mind from worries.
$ l" k: a7 G( v# Y* W$ h& j 3. Live simply.
3 |7 o1 R |1 Y8 t7 \4 M6 U 4. Give more. 5 t$ V% c' j1 P5 ?9 P9 D( E
5. Expect less. |
|