 鲜花( 29)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed
a' @$ W- J- t" ?each morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and
6 `2 f% |" e, a0 S$ O. n7 |shaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a
* W3 |5 _9 V* T- J, Wnursing home today. / v* H! \! b$ q& o, `
: `& W! d; E. e- z3 Z$ i! n8 e5 R: `
His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. 4 \1 W1 ?# z% J" b& P
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home,
i2 w6 t' [( Rhe smiled sweetly when told his room was ready. / s) f$ i# p1 Y! O
6 \6 G; c5 ~- M* w' H% l8 y: WAs he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual
! ?4 E# ?5 ~, w4 E! r9 i" `description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been
) l# ], {1 Z4 k. N5 e9 j7 e% u1 F( xhung on his window. 6 C/ e. O7 v8 i' x9 C5 z. E7 a; O
8 w! X8 r9 X1 T"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having " K- E% t! b' F2 H. Y
just been presented with a new puppy. % C( C0 X7 N( `% G2 U8 L
% Y; C) D$ J" m; _4 N1 n0 j1 p- Y+ n
"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait."
& @$ s% G+ K5 t' z2 U# l
/ `* \4 n$ u2 B0 @7 W% ^2 U$ B"That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied.
/ e1 x7 `* `3 O6 x* t
3 [4 \/ N3 Y2 P# L- l"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my
( }; A; Y9 Q$ S& m9 froom or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how ( Z r% m `7 a. R
I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it."
, w$ A- [0 U6 @) E
0 R" a- g+ s, C' xIt's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. $ l, n6 m1 V8 p' v( c0 e3 a
! W1 S' `) ^ s( I
I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I
; M' [- E; s v) U7 Khave with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed ! H( [) g( C8 z; x& e
and be thankful for the ones that do.
; e; x4 Q" x$ w$ A
X, X8 @6 }( F% k5 `Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new
2 [* V2 z# ]' m: D% X5 M: nday and all the happy memories I've stored away. % L1 [7 J9 t' q+ T3 u! V; B
, Z0 \/ L1 R/ k
Just for this time in my life. * x7 B8 R3 A+ S% `
! l) T* h" M5 Y: E$ e$ m# LOld age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in.
! [& b0 t, u. t+ B$ l! y
2 l% s: R" C9 ?/ HSo, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank . U( \) s3 n3 E( h( ]7 C
account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank.
L# x6 u8 X% K7 `2 {( n$ xI am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy: / c O: D, i! V. F( ~7 D
7 h: M- c' O3 m6 G% }7 Q 1. Free your heart from hatred. 4 X4 n. p9 n+ y2 S
2. Free your mind from worries.
- g8 P' A# [% n0 M- ]- y 3. Live simply. " D& e4 ^' V$ m
4. Give more. - K- Z& S4 D" ]
5. Expect less. |
|