 鲜花( 29)  鸡蛋( 0)
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A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed 6 m; F! A$ m6 W0 r d9 }9 a \: n
each morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and
' U4 i. ^* n* }0 t. P& o# Fshaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a 0 ~1 V K- b B
nursing home today. $ o$ M" k9 x _$ k( y
% o( m @ x- B- I5 {4 t6 ?His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. 8 h6 g$ v+ o; m: x* X; B
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home,
( ^5 L/ |0 H+ i7 Y( P1 P2 p8 | C6 The smiled sweetly when told his room was ready. 7 U$ i9 p$ p y; K4 @% X3 r! @
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As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual
1 `& U8 l6 [' n1 k5 u* jdescription of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been
' l8 R7 N; `% X; H: @' ]7 |hung on his window. ) [% J$ ~! g2 g' `" @, Z0 Q
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"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having ( W) X2 z! b' }1 }2 K A
just been presented with a new puppy.
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"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait."
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"That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied. 1 }+ L( g$ F! U! i2 Q. J
& d6 J; p9 r+ p; r1 c; ^1 A$ a"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my
# q( h+ h: _2 l3 F% Droom or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how : L8 P9 F, l4 K3 Q4 B8 H
I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it."
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It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. / n8 v# N2 g, K
( c, p% a7 j6 b. D# x3 pI have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I
6 {; `5 A; y$ G9 v% i* o! Whave with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed 2 F- h5 k4 F# q2 w+ w8 U
and be thankful for the ones that do. . l! h! \* E& m7 d) G4 ?5 q: B
) t) ]& u6 d3 o* @Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new 8 b7 L. N4 n+ m* z/ Q
day and all the happy memories I've stored away. # c% N# C' ^9 n0 |: n
3 z; q5 f0 x% Q) q0 iJust for this time in my life. 4 d! U9 G! o3 y5 _4 m3 \& ~4 U1 n4 L
2 ?/ y4 {8 [# h ]" D2 l0 v! g. YOld age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in. 0 [( Z7 F+ c" \1 l1 O
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So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank
8 {( m# F0 @3 {+ }& P4 `account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank.
( R- {+ w+ J3 w: q9 a6 o4 g RI am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
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& E4 ?% f! W k: A 1. Free your heart from hatred.
$ w4 O, u% |; A2 U 2. Free your mind from worries.
! d3 k5 h: Y! E* R/ z* | 3. Live simply. & B' C7 n+ D0 H; I8 E4 p( L
4. Give more. ! n( u+ h! y0 E5 T3 G; r3 P A: s
5. Expect less. |
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