THE BANK ACCOUNT ON HAPPINESS
Mr. Jones was a 92 year old well dressed, proud man who found himself patiently waiting in the lobby of a nursing home to be escorted to his room. His wife of 70 years had recently passed away and since he was legally blind, it was necessary for him to move into the nursing home.
He smiled sweetly at the young woman who came to help him to his room. As he maneuvered his walker towards the waiting elevator, the young woman provided a visual description of his tiny room, including the eyelet curtains that hung at the window, the color of his bedspread and how the furniture was placed.
“I love it” he stated with all the enthusiasm of an eight year old having just been presented with a new puppy. The woman replied, “Mr. Jones, you haven’t even seen your room yet – just wait.” He immediately replied, “That doesn’t have anything to do with it. 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 know 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 well, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes are open, I’ll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve stored away. Just for this time in my life”
He went on by saying “Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you’ve put into it. So, my advice to you, young lady, is to deposit a lot of happiness daily in the bank account of memories.”