What a GREAT way to look at life!
The 92-year old, petite, well-poised and proud lady, who is
fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with her hair
fashionably coifed and makeup perfectly applied, even though she is
legally blind,moved to a nursing home today. Her husband of 70
years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many
hour of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, she
smiled sweetly when told her room was ready.
As she maneuvered her walker to the elevator, I provided a
visual
description of her tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had
been hung on her window.
"I love it," she stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year
old having just been presented with a new puppy. "Mrs. Jones, you
haven't seen the room...just wait."
"That doesn't have anything to do with it," she replied.
"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether
I
like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is
arranged...it's how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love
it. It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. I have
a
choice;
I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with
the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be
thankful for the ones that do
Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on
the new day and all the happy memories I've stored away ...
just
for this time in my life. Old age is like a bank account ... you
withdraw from what you've put in. So, my advice to you would be to
deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories. Thank
you for your part in filling my Memory Bank. I am still
depositing.
Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
> >> > 1. Free your heart from hatred.
> >> > 2. Free your mind from worries.
> >> > 3. Live simply.
> >> > 4. Give more.
> >> > 5. Expect less.
