 鲜花( 29)  鸡蛋( 0)
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A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed 1 X/ \- n$ R# z2 O
each morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and . D, U% j0 W2 A2 b8 e, V2 q
shaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a
, L+ l7 ^4 e6 k7 F- c3 o$ y5 _. pnursing home today. ; Z, F4 E2 I" G4 r- Q! Y3 \1 d
6 Y/ c$ \: G( l `) XHis wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. ! N& F: _ C1 C5 T7 V
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home,
" h7 d3 d( K$ Ghe smiled sweetly when told his room was ready. & P! ]. ^6 r. U4 U& V
/ O( g- S1 d. P& u+ O! o$ y# ?As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual , a" h0 I. H; z+ `- E' ~
description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been
' F* g9 Z+ S. _* b1 E. Rhung on his window.
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"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having
* l3 n/ s, l2 `: c {! Ajust been presented with a new puppy.
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- u' K% D0 d: V- p! }"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait."
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! _; X' d) p6 Z"That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied. 3 q2 `0 S/ C3 m4 a
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"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my # y A2 E: m# x3 H" G! U, A
room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how
. k0 N6 j9 h/ j. R3 x7 V0 NI arrange my mind. I already decided to love it." 2 V4 I3 D" v9 h( C6 z
: O6 {& l1 [$ n% ]It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up.
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- _# |* b4 j1 {3 cI have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I
5 [, ?* `1 i7 d2 mhave with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed , L; | Y* H' {$ W( T
and be thankful for the ones that do. # r, t+ F3 f3 b: p! x
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Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new
, Z5 K6 N' t+ u5 E. O) R' K) G+ vday and all the happy memories I've stored away.
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/ m } L5 o4 g3 T4 V% F" FJust for this time in my life.
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Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in.
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So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank
4 v8 M" b3 H c0 D; _& g7 P$ ^account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank.
' u3 y3 Q; x! F0 V/ W/ k5 L5 lI am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
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& l% g+ e* I. j0 V: h) _& R& ?) a& H 1. Free your heart from hatred. ( P4 R- r) a, w
2. Free your mind from worries.
: e3 F# g+ ~. }6 S- R 3. Live simply.
. A4 @$ b: C) a1 c/ M+ b; w0 {* ? 4. Give more. ! @& v: X* u7 P9 S) h
5. Expect less. |
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