WISDOM FOR A HAPPY LIFE
The 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud mother-in-law of my best
friend, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with her hair
fashionably coifed and makeup perfectly applied, even though she is legally
blind, moved to a nursing home today. Her husband of 70 years recently
passed away, making the move necessary. Maurine Jones is the most lovely,
gracious, dignified woman that I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. While
I have never aspired to attain her depth of wisdom, I do pray that I will learn
from her vast experience.
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, she
smiled sweetly when told her room was ready. As she maneuvered her walker
to the elevator, I provided a visual description of her tiny room, including the
eyelet sheets that had been hung on her window. "I love it," she stated with
the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new
puppy.
"Mrs. Jones, you haven't seen the room ... just wait."
"That doesn't have anything to do with it," she 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."
Author Unknown
The 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud mother-in-law of my best
friend, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with her hair
fashionably coifed and makeup perfectly applied, even though she is legally
blind, moved to a nursing home today. Her husband of 70 years recently
passed away, making the move necessary. Maurine Jones is the most lovely,
gracious, dignified woman that I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. While
I have never aspired to attain her depth of wisdom, I do pray that I will learn
from her vast experience.
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, she
smiled sweetly when told her room was ready. As she maneuvered her walker
to the elevator, I provided a visual description of her tiny room, including the
eyelet sheets that had been hung on her window. "I love it," she stated with
the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new
puppy.
"Mrs. Jones, you haven't seen the room ... just wait."
"That doesn't have anything to do with it," she 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."
Author Unknown
Wisdom for a Happy Life
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