She is
92 years old, petite, well poised, and proud. She is fully
dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with her hair fashionably
coifed, and her makeup perfectly applied, in spite of the
fact she is legally blind. Today she has moved to a nursing
home. Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making
this move necessary.
After many
hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home,
where I am employed, 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 curtains 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," I said.
Then she spoke these words that I will never forget: "That
does not have anything to do with it," she gently replied.
"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time.
Whether I like the room or not, does not depend on how the
furniture is arranged. It is how I arrange my mind. I have
already decided to love it. It is 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 I can get out of bed
and be thankful for the ones that do work. Each day is a
gift, and as long as my eyes open, I will focus on the new
day and all of the happy memories I have stored away....just
for this time in my life.
