Gratitude is the Key to Happiness

A 92-year-old man, petite, well-poised and proud, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, hair fashionably coifed and face cleanly shaved, moved to a nursing home today. A move that was precipitated by the death of his wife of 70 years.

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,  because the old man was legally blind, his attendant described his tiny room to him, right down to the eyelet sheets that 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." replied the surprised attendant.

"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 depends on how I arrange my mind. I decided to love the room as soon as I woke up today.

Being happy is decision I make every morning. I have a choice; I can spend the day recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or 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. Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in to it."

So, I take the advice of this old man and you should too. Deposit a lot of happiness into your bank account of memories and remember the five simple rules to being happy:

1. Free your heart from hatred

2. Free your mind from worries

3. Live simply

4. Give more

5. Expect less

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