 鲜花( 29)  鸡蛋( 0)
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A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed
$ T( z, r, I" zeach morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and
2 `' | Q4 Q5 r8 Eshaved perfectly applied, even though he is legally blind, moved to a
* ^3 t0 r. Q* `nursing home today.
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His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary.
2 l( U- r& t4 v- ~" N! iAfter many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, F* b3 s |+ Q, R/ X' S
he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready.
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, D' E( w) x! o# t! [As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual 1 h0 e9 p9 Q" ]3 p" r4 @/ J
description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been # e D. m7 v7 W, a: R" Y
hung on his window.
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, w) D9 `1 H; @: \* \3 f: I; g p"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having
- E4 ^1 ]; a- s' ujust been presented with a new puppy. ) C0 I# Q% f6 h5 i" [& ^4 w! v( P
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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. % ]$ ~7 H$ l$ L
4 d, R" }( U1 k. I: ?"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my 4 ^7 n2 r e1 A) t' N* e
room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how , F) O( Q a$ n; X
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.
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4 ?% H; }8 j3 r. u& G2 j/ cI have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I
x. |2 X+ f% n# X% e7 ihave with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed 4 H) {% |* Z8 ~* h2 W2 G
and be thankful for the ones that do. * f4 c* ]# g9 _3 G6 M
8 O1 G% @9 v. l) ~: u BEach day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new - L- y, Q$ h/ X( i1 _9 s
day and all the happy memories I've stored away. 9 y" m) v3 E. W! k7 R' B- J
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Just for this time in my life. " J. ]( |9 L& d* q/ m6 A; q% c% }
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Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in.
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( W9 N1 ~$ ] W* ~# xSo, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank 4 Z) o7 O* U! }4 Q( H, h* m& r
account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank.
% D0 ], X7 y9 p, y$ GI am still depositing." Remember the five simple rules to be happy: " t" X6 v# K Q
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1. Free your heart from hatred.
7 D J. T C1 F$ a" f/ p b 2. Free your mind from worries.
+ h' S& e: K6 d) ?4 F 3. Live simply. / _5 K7 v$ _7 j) P' y9 Y! P
4. Give more.
9 I2 a6 p/ R5 n# C# ^ 5. Expect less. |
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