 鲜花( 29)  鸡蛋( 0)
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A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed
4 O. n* U0 }% W8 Z6 h1 |, z% weach morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and
; K4 n, p* @) R. j7 b% _8 W. K6 B- u/ ashaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a 7 I- S% J& d% ^0 [
nursing home today. ( q! Q- ~% k6 a7 M) r6 V; C
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His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary.
U: b. _6 ]6 r* ?After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, 7 s$ l$ |7 a e9 L2 `
he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready.
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F8 A v1 e+ F, X, O8 B/ j' kAs he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual 2 F V7 `/ K e- e! o( o9 [
description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been 7 ?$ A% u4 q2 K4 z/ c# c+ g: f
hung on his window.
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* v8 }% ^8 |+ G7 `9 |"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having
7 N6 _5 o) x. v) \$ p- jjust been presented with a new puppy. - Z3 K7 q& Q/ a) c
$ k" d/ K3 y0 y# Q"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait." 0 _- h: R3 |! l h$ P
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"That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied.
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"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my
- p/ e$ E% Y7 j( ^& @5 [% ~room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how
8 q) P2 u1 C( h; s7 w4 ]& a& W/ nI arrange my mind. I already decided to love it." 2 R0 [) P' V, M1 H$ h# [3 k9 M
0 b9 Y4 w; u* j s1 D: d, J" }0 ] qIt's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. # ~# c! ~5 D# e1 {0 ^# G" ?2 W, g
' t3 `! k A: q: QI have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I / s$ H3 D# E: r# _9 N/ }
have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed
* W% F4 v8 s, u8 F, o. P$ Dand be thankful for the ones that do. 6 z# i8 Z* C4 L5 l4 Z: |
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Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new
& i+ p C0 j) o+ k0 I, \day and all the happy memories I've stored away. - L# {- [) X+ O% f
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Just for this time in my life. & ]. b# B: ^0 s$ ~4 F
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Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in.
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6 Q" h9 r/ ]* o& XSo, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank : j) v% g! A1 k
account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank.
4 c+ h# s: y1 m t' AI am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
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1. Free your heart from hatred. * h" O/ c* [9 h
2. Free your mind from worries. 1 e" H, T# g% ^8 B2 z e- ^
3. Live simply.
7 ]" ]/ B/ p1 Q: x4 | 4. Give more.
- G7 g7 T5 P- Z0 W; G8 l 5. Expect less. |
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