 鲜花( 29)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed
! |* C; n& a" E+ U8 p' Feach morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and
3 ~+ {# _0 N* {6 ^, pshaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a 6 C! ?! Q! R% a7 R6 L2 o* S* L1 Y
nursing home today. 3 w3 Z2 }1 t0 V
; O. @2 d+ `! R# B* O( mHis wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary.
5 z7 G: ^! a1 G8 Q2 g9 {After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home,
7 R; J/ k) l5 ^he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready.
3 s5 h4 x$ d& T1 t4 u" U' w! B7 I+ U$ t) Q# Y+ r" N% w
As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual
* T; ^5 c6 m- t" e1 Q. s+ qdescription of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been , Q7 f- J" T% i! A6 c( k( P) Y2 G
hung on his window.
1 _9 d- c) l' O4 i2 d2 j7 |) n
5 h1 Q3 R+ v0 Q: {0 ]$ m"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having + S \8 ^" b3 ?' b
just been presented with a new puppy.
8 G! g- j# a/ u6 U+ }+ e, n5 N+ l3 O
"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait."
+ w3 O( I$ L; u G) R" H6 w+ ]0 ^+ L: H4 v* ?. {
"That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied. ' @3 `* j; l% c$ @9 b; D1 k5 b+ s
% }9 i0 q) Y/ H- U2 l"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my 9 _, t8 E# C4 H! y0 e
room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how
8 q: a3 ?9 \+ O8 b" hI arrange my mind. I already decided to love it."
+ \! U$ i. Z8 N2 e+ r& A3 j5 H* [% G
It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up.
& r) `1 r1 H' j& u9 E- [+ P
6 _& A: D! d7 K& V: E' BI have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I
5 y5 U ~$ r, P" n% Z- L6 Thave with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed ( A% V7 P/ v# G, h$ a& ]+ @8 ]
and be thankful for the ones that do.
" t5 d- Q; U/ o* m* M9 f% h$ |: Q4 q; v/ M
Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new
1 z+ v) p6 S% A' L6 Uday and all the happy memories I've stored away. 3 Z' R& x( c, c& l2 J
9 ], x, k/ @" W) }Just for this time in my life. - `8 X( e# I6 _: z$ @
' v7 k9 S" H' m* y' B: J- y
Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in.
' y; t6 x; o, e6 Q
% n% G* @. F# U: C5 a( O: eSo, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank & l; u# Y$ [" D1 i
account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank.
# W) h8 K5 Q, m0 d% dI am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy: 4 T2 f0 ?2 F$ `; f1 q
+ v7 _- _7 e- P2 ?
1. Free your heart from hatred. 9 b4 I/ V- A5 ?- h9 u
2. Free your mind from worries. - I$ f: J- L h# f: x' h7 c7 U
3. Live simply. ( o1 G4 N+ M; i4 o* i
4. Give more. 0 h; A4 q) F7 V% V! G9 {& \
5. Expect less. |
|