 鲜花( 29)  鸡蛋( 0)
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A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed
% f$ N0 s8 }5 P {' A: _, G% Y! O2 Teach morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and 5 D g' r3 |$ c ]/ S
shaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a
, s* ]- T" k; Z4 T7 Lnursing home today.
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5 e$ {+ y" N8 m3 @) [, pHis wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. 4 L8 Z9 |. f- `' b3 S* U
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home,
) {0 i1 k4 {: r" h) \he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready.
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9 p8 p) L7 Q8 n3 uAs he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual
5 Z6 S8 _& V2 j0 B+ x0 C; |. u3 ydescription of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been
$ g; e$ E' o+ w( I+ Ihung on his window. % K9 u7 u) G3 ~- f9 d$ |
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"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having 2 }6 E: B! G# q, w
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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, L9 s/ H* a o+ A! `- s"That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied. ) D4 B; u8 M# K
- [; O) c3 [6 G; I( {"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my
+ P4 i( Q! ?2 ~) s' Wroom or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how
4 S, q1 A O% m( V! C5 jI 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. 2 t2 W9 }' f8 ?, Q, I$ ~
3 Z# K0 ]; g& T8 HI have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I 2 K9 M/ t6 ~ a: l! A
have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed
6 }: h2 `* ?( R2 E( Rand be thankful for the ones that do.
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Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new
7 |" f0 L- @2 R0 p2 pday and all the happy memories I've stored away.
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# [8 q. m. D4 WJust for this time in my life.
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$ s& T/ H) t3 x. v8 M, NOld age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in. + h9 l& ]9 q' p, J6 ?, W `+ x1 ?
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So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank % q9 X7 H% N3 ?- D7 G+ @
account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank. . ?! U2 a9 J' l. Q& r
I am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy: 6 N W" M& W/ V' E* P# N
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1. Free your heart from hatred.
+ c$ g0 v- o0 z! _ 2. Free your mind from worries. ; ?8 Z; a, i, x& K1 e# O6 G- W
3. Live simply.
2 V5 A9 O3 T8 W: G% S 4. Give more.
8 ?9 o' o( t8 _. u9 m 5. Expect less. |
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