hello people!
It's been a while I know... Please dont give up on me yet. Been on leave from work to writing exams. I am done now and back to the office. Thanks to all you lovely people who checked up on me on twitter, here on the blog and on Facebook... I appreciate, shows I was missed! to my new followers, you are welcome! trust you will have a jolly good ride with moi here...
As usual I read this piece on a friends wall on facebook. It's a young man's story, and I know a lot of you might have read it somewhere too. I think its worth sharing... Please read and share your thoughts... For me, It is, among other things, a story about people holding on to a dream no matter what the limitations are... Hang in there, keep hope alive til you drop. Just read, you just might agree with me. P:S - a few lines edited to suit our reality...
"The first day of school our lecturer introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn’t already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder. I
turned round to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a
smile that lit up her entire being.
She said, “Hi handsome. My name is Rose. I’m eighty-seven years old. May I give you a hug?” I laughed and enthusiastically responded, “Of course you may!” and she gave me a giant squeeze.
“Why are you in college at such a young, innocent age? (yea... that's how I asked the question)” I asked.
She jokingly replied, “I’m here to meet a rich husband, get married, and have a couple of kids…” “No seriously,” I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to take on such a challenge at her age.
“I always dreamed of having a college education and now I’m getting one!” she told me.
After class we walked to the student union building and shared a
chocolate milkshake. We became instant friends. Every day for the next
three months, we would leave class together and talk nonstop. I was
always mesmerized listening to this “time machine” as she shared her wisdom and experience with me. Over the course of the year, Rose became a campus icon and she easily
made friends wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she reveled in
the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was living
it up.
At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our
football banquet. I’ll never forget what she taught us. She was
introduced and stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her
prepared speech, she dropped her three by five cards on the floor.
Frustrated and a little embarrassed she leaned into the microphone and
simply said, “I’m sorry I’m so jittery. I gave up beer for Lent (that's 6weeks before Easter in the Catholic liturgical year) and this
whiskey is killing me! I’ll never get my speech back in order so let me
just tell you what I know.”
As we laughed she cleared her throat
and began, “We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old
because we stop playing. There are only four secrets to staying young,
being happy, and achieving success. You have to laugh and find humor
every day.
You’ve got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die. We have so many people walking around who are dead and don’t even know
it! There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up.
If you are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don’t
do one productive thing, you will turn twenty years old. If I am eighty-seven years old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything I will turn eighty-eight.
Anybody can grow older, That doesn’t take any talent or ability. The
idea is to grow up by always finding opportunity in change.
Have no regrets. The elderly usually don’t have regrets for what we did, but rather for
things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with
regrets.”
She concluded her speech by courageously singing “The Rose.” She challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily lives.
At the year’s end Rose finished the college degree she had begun all
those years ago.
One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her
sleep. Over two thousand college students attended her funeral in
tribute to the wonderful woman who taught by example that it’s never too
late to be all you can possibly be"
Hmmm... this is one of a most inspiring piece if you ask me and how it touched me I have already shared... Have a wonderful week people!
Peace... I'm out!
