This week, our Gardant Blogs have focused on highlighting words of wisdom from residents in the senior living, assisted living and memory care communities that Gardant manages.
Their insights and advice are based on decades of life experiences.
You can find the responses from more than 50 residents in the first two Blogs we posted this week. Given all that we are going through right now with the coronavirus, this insight, in particular, caught my attention – “Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass. It is about learning to dance in the rain.”
Today, we highlight the responses from another two dozen residents:
Be helpful to your fellow man or woman. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you; rich or poor, we are all the same people.
Have a happy smile.
The 1st third of your life goes very slowly. Then we are “too old too soon and too late smart.” Don’t be afraid to try new things or challenges while you are young. You’ll be old soon enough.
Always greet others with a smile and a hello, with a kind word or two. Try to do something nice for someone daily. If you have nothing nice to say, keep quiet.
I learned early in life that people don’t care to hear about your woes, but seeing a smile helps them and me.
Everyone comes with baggage; find someone to love.
Live by the Serenity Prayer. “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference.”
Be dependent on the Lord.
Keep God always first in your life. Follow His laws.
Keep God first, and you will prosper.
Be good to others; help others when you can. Say thank you.
Parents know best; listen. Be kind and smile. Go above and beyond; others will pay attention.
When I married, my mother said talk, share your day, your thoughts, your plans, your goals, your dreams. Best advice I ever got.
Love yourself and the rest will follow.
Work hard; many doors will open.
Be open to learning new things. Be willing to share. Have the strength to grow. Make new friends. Trust the Lord. Keep the faith. Believe in thy self.
Believe in God. Make a lot of friends. Try to enjoy life.
Where there is a valley of hard times, there is always a mountain of good times ahead. Stay positive.
My words of wisdom – patience, understanding, love, caring, humility, playful, strict, laugh, hope, work, dance, joyful.
Always be a true friend; be a friend to a stranger.
Help one another and have fun.
Smile when you meet someone coming toward you. Don’t disagree with someone if you cannot back up your reason to do so. Life is only what you make of it. Don’t try to live someone else’s life; you have enough problems living you own. Thank God you’re here each day. Stay healthy and see another day. Love, Laugh, Live.
Most of all, try to be pleasant all the time, which I know is hard at times to do.
P.S. Our older adult loved ones have a lifetime of memories and decades of experiences. During this period of time when so many of us are impacted by stay-at-home, shelter-in-place and quarantine directives because of the coronavirus, ask them to tell you about those memories and experiences.
Ask them about their family – their parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and cousins.
Ask them about their childhood. What school was like. The games they played. The toys they played with. What they did when school was out. What are their favorite memories of their childhood?
Ask them about the jobs they had; the music they liked; the pets they have had; their favorite television shows and movies.
What places have they had the opportunity to visit. Which ones were their favorites?
As teenagers and as adults, what did they do for fun?
What have been the biggest changes they have experienced in their lives?
What words of wisdom do they have?
If they have the ability, ask them to document their answers. It could prove a wonderful alternative to sitting in front of the television for hours on end.
Let them know how great it would be for them and for you to share their answers with grandchildren and great grandchildren. Their answers could create a family legacy to share with generations to come.