A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably combed and shaved perfectly, even though he is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today.
His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready. As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on his window. "I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy.
"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait." "That doesn' t have anything to do with it," he 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!"
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.
3 comments:
Hey Erin... regarding the photo of Mama and her siblings, you were in Ireland with her when this was taken. You were 22 years old. You, Curtis and Mama went when I was 16. :)
Louie--Hmm, my memory is bad. I know that we went to Ireland when I was sixteen as well (you age 10). I thought I took this picture then, but I actually know I took the black and white photographs of Mama and her Mama then. So, maybe you are correct that this was the next trip there, when I took the photo (Age 22)
Well, I just remember vividly because the summer of 87 (when you were 22) was a very difficult one for me because there was no food in the house so that Mama could save money for the trip. Regardless, the first time we went to Ireland was in 1980..., at lease that's what our passport says. I remember DeeDee and Alanna receiving a telegram from Auntie Meesh wishing them a happy 13th birthday. That means you would have turned 15 while we were there.
Another fact is that we only had a 110 camera on that trip. There is no way that camera would have taken such a clear picture as that you posted.
Love you!
Post a Comment