鲜花( 29) 鸡蛋( 0)
|
A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed : p/ ^' L! ~% J; I* f' z. P
each morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and 2 @; }2 f8 ?8 K1 G" t6 Z
shaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a
$ }/ S$ u5 g6 I0 qnursing home today.
, o% B1 g4 V7 C2 v/ n9 a3 L% A8 z* {
His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary.
$ u# K P( c3 V8 w; r2 N0 u2 BAfter many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home,
( i# X G' C; w' Khe smiled sweetly when told his room was ready. $ d+ I& Y' B% V! @6 U- ~3 o
4 \0 p1 R6 M( d( L7 [' QAs he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual 3 `9 A r: a* j. T
description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been
, H1 k& ` d) c% p: K# d1 H( thung on his window. # U7 D8 P( H+ d
& s% \+ ]+ c. m4 M3 I"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having B# J+ J8 [3 Q( a$ j) j
just been presented with a new puppy.
6 s7 {9 n3 @% G: W# L* _" P) R( {! a
"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait."
8 n, t: d( e! |- c8 X, j+ P5 S, u8 Y1 s/ k
"That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied. 7 L& V2 _0 I0 a+ _- N) w, h3 ^
/ v% Y$ W3 p- R J3 M
"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my
4 I; b k: r" m% c2 U5 Proom or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how
6 ~) ~, n5 E' j a" \8 wI arrange my mind. I already decided to love it." 6 c" ~9 @2 |; s
- f! a0 Z6 i; t# SIt's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. ( W4 W* ] a) }
; K; z, m/ i0 x1 W, P+ J v
I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I
4 d% T" D$ u' @ y7 N& Whave with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed / I$ E; {: S5 K, v6 U1 a
and be thankful for the ones that do. 3 a$ C3 q* G. u0 _- U+ j
- o. P8 d3 e( z S
Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new 1 M7 y- q/ s6 I
day and all the happy memories I've stored away. ) h. p# r: T) w4 v
$ w/ B" { \4 u; F
Just for this time in my life.
' h: t$ f1 A. s! y: U7 q! @: w0 i. A" M$ v6 [% `& Z+ d) R& p+ s
Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in. + z' d) n$ U0 F% {' u: p
2 s" i- H: H: m
So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank . p o+ J; P; W3 Z! F) c+ d
account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank. & |8 u" F; W- t( u) a
I am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
9 k2 `; r/ g2 `1 y9 x" E& f, O3 j i: U2 V( \: S! E0 m
1. Free your heart from hatred.
* { R( S8 K2 o. l. H 2. Free your mind from worries. . n$ ^3 A. W2 ?" B. V
3. Live simply. % f" }7 v. T4 Z5 t: u/ o
4. Give more. 8 Z$ [, a! V' G( K
5. Expect less. |
|