In honor of Thankful Thursday, here’s a short inspirational story that was emailed to us this week…
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 after his wife of 70 years passed away. After many hours of waiting patiently to move into his new room in the nursing home, he smiled sweetly when told his room was finally 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 choose happiness. I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulties I have or I can get out of bed and be thankful for all of my blessings. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes are open I will focus on the beauty that each new day offers. Life is like a bank account in that you withdraw from what you’ve put in.
Moral of the story: Life is a choice. Choose happiness where you can & be sure to share the love with those around you to maximize the deposits in the bank account of life!