 鲜花( 29)  鸡蛋( 0)
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A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed
9 j& Q$ D8 ?- ]6 d2 w# B* aeach morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and : u b5 {) F9 r6 s& r( u9 m$ [, b) O; E; |
shaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a - S5 I3 k* w+ A, ^3 k0 n+ }
nursing home today.
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$ X( a, O, S& S9 _+ AHis wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. 5 _% F* d' Z( ?, E4 X J! F6 ^' X# C
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, 4 A3 j- p, O9 w: H" j7 u' Y
he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready.
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As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual
1 C9 k' M* l+ p0 ?description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been ; _6 g. E; J2 b' c1 x8 n' J, {$ _ ^0 e
hung on his window.
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( x6 u* k% x. U) ]"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having
& C3 }3 A$ W- K; Q( E7 r' a' ejust been presented with a new puppy. 6 a( t0 x& }+ n$ n. r2 G; B3 e( F
3 G, o9 Q \" F"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait." + b& |3 W5 U0 T* I% w5 m
! _& q- d* I" F# R"That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied. 5 l* z- ~! q6 g" d
8 p3 }% E' t5 p" z"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my 4 S5 p% l, H( m& I( |7 T* ~9 ? j
room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how ' Z& c2 L' m* ?
I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it."
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4 O8 p g! r5 ^" K9 ~It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. ; E6 w k9 c9 J7 C& ?; ^" z8 s7 @
3 g9 H; y+ @; z p% Y2 J( @3 a. pI have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I
' P0 n- U1 ^+ ~2 w1 ~ ~, Whave with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed
[' ^, o% [8 H% v! o: }" X- u4 Nand be thankful for the ones that do. , O. D/ K/ A, N& ?; k* J1 w
& z' {7 B- y9 ^4 T* hEach day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new
% M: _& V, @+ [4 U& J8 Nday and all the happy memories I've stored away.
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Just for this time in my life.
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, B9 y; H2 e& Z( l% v# uOld age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in. / d# X: _' M9 I" r
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So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank
6 i" z6 u; e- }. baccount of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank.
% U3 k7 D, ]7 f; }- e% C( U# tI am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy: / i! v. K: P# P8 N! `% _
$ q( m6 N8 p9 J 1. Free your heart from hatred. + M4 F. Y3 y, L) T/ [* R
2. Free your mind from worries.
+ O. @4 X* b% i7 y2 R4 G 3. Live simply.
' ~1 D" l# @9 q6 ~' ^ 4. Give more.
( S& h6 n2 T& Y 5. Expect less. |
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