Food For Thought

A 92-year-old, small, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed each morning by eighto'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and shaved perfectly, even though he is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today. His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, he smiled sweetly when told his room was 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 aranged... it's how I arrange my mind. I have already decided to love it."

"It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. You see, 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."

Imagine that... People who actually see the glass as half full instead of half empty.

I know that sometimes, it's difficult to have such a positive outlook on life, but Mrs. Gawfer and I are trying to teach our children to think and behave based on what they know is right... Not on how they feel, because feelings are never the basis for truth.