Journal of a Living Lady #45
Nancy White Kelly
Until the horse is dead, I won’t dismount. I only plan to spend the last day of my life dying. The rest of my days I intend to live life to its fullest. One thing I have learned this past year is to not put a period where God has put a comma.
Last Thanksgiving I was very, very sick. It was strange timing. This was the date one of my doctors had given me as the latest estimate of my life expectancy. After all I have metastatic cancer, or do I? The doctors say I do. Pathology reports are explicit. However, as I write this I don’t feel so sick or at least not sick unto death. Wouldn’t it be a statement to the reality of prayer if I lived another decade or so? Truthfully, I am making a statement to the reality of prayer just being here today.
There are other important things that affect our mortality. I believe every survival kit should include a sense of humor. It is true that he who laughs lasts. Time flies whether you are having fun or not.
Recently I went horseback riding in North Carolina. Everything was going fine until the horse started bouncing out of control. I tried with all my might to hang on, but was thrown off. Just when things could not possibly get worse, my foot got caught in the stirrup. When this happened, I fell head first to the ground. My head continued to bounce as the horse did not stop or even slow down. Just as I was losing consciousness, the Wal-Mart manager came and unplugged the horse. Gotcha.
My 97-year-old mother-in-law is still a joy to be around. She has a strong Christian faith and laughs a lot. How fortunate I was to marry Buddy and get her in the deal.
Attitude is a big factor in how long we live. Attitude determines our altitude. I don’t like being around pessimistic people. They depress me. I go out of my way to avoid negative people. Two negatives might make a plus in algebra, but not in life.
My lively grandmother always got the prize for the tackiest hat at the senior citizen party. She almost lived to be 100-years-old. I think it no coincidence that Grandma had a joyful, optimistic attitude. After she buried eight brothers and sisters and then four of her children, she grieved greatly, but briefly.
At times we take ourselves too seriously. Probably we would worry less about what people think of us if we knew how seldom they did. We aren’t nearly as important as we sometimes think we are. Cemeteries are full of indispensable people
web: https://www.angelfire.com/bc/nancykelly
January 12, 2000
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