A friend of mine shared the following story with me and it really hit a chord! I think it’s a story we could all take lessons from, so here we go…
A very elegant and petite lady in her 90’s always made sure she was up and dressed before 8.00 a.m. each morning. She took care to ensure that her hair was taken up neatly and carefully applied her make-up, even though she was partially blind. Her husband, whom she had been married to for 70 years had recently died, making it necessary for her to move into a nursing home.
On arrival at the home she had to wait several hours in the lobby before being told that her room was ready, and she smiled sweetly at this news. A member of nursing staff helped her into the lift with her walking frame and started to describe the tiny and cramped room that was to be her ‘new home’. She listened carefully before declaring “I love it” with the enthusiasm a child would display when opening a much longed for present. The member of staff replied:
“You haven’t seen the room yet…just wait.”
The elderly lady responded:
“That really 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 and I have already decided that I love it. It’s a decision I make each morning when I wake up. I have a choice…I could spend all day in bed feeling sorry about the parts of my body that no longer work, or I can get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do. Each day is a gift and as long as my eyes still open I’ll focus on the new day and all the wonderful, happy memories I have stored away, just for this time in life.
Life is like a bank account…you withdraw what you put in. So, my advice would be to deposit as much happiness in your bank account of memories – I am still depositing”.
Here are some simple rules to be happy:
- Free your mind from worries
- You always have a choice
- Be kind to those you meet on life’s journey
- Enjoy the here and now
- Take action
- Follow your dreams
For anybody that feels they have reached a ‘fork in the road’ and wants to take action to make a positive difference in their lives, please come along to our NLP and Coaching convention on the 27th of March next year.
Cheers!
Wendy Lukacs