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| A Candle and A Mirror |
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| Author Unknown - Adapted |
The 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud lady was fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock.
Her hair was fashionably done up and makeup applied perfectly even though she is legally blind. She was being moved to a nursing home today.
Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary.
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, 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 given a new puppy.
I said, "Mrs. Jones, you haven't seen the room yet."
"That doesn't have anything to do with it," she replied. "This is something you decide on ahead of time. We get to be either candles or mirrors in life.
Whether I like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged...
it's how I arrange my mind. I want to be like a candle shining light around me. I already decided to love my room. "It's 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 get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do.
Each day is a gift of light, and as long as my eyes open, I'll focus on the new day and all the
happy memories of others I've stored away. That is the mirror part - reflecting the light of others.
Old age is like a bank account ... you withdraw from what you've put in. So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of enlightening moments of Gratitude, peace and love in your bank account of memories."
No one can go back and make a brand new start. But, anyone can start from now and make a new ending.
“You see…” she said winking at me,” I am determined to be both a candle and a mirror!”
Author Unknown - Adapted
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