AGING WELL? Part Three
Genesis 2:15 The LORD God took the man and put him
in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.
Proverbs 18:14 A human spirit can endure in sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear?
Godliness with
contentment is great gain. (1Tim.6:6)
Feelings are
largely a matter of personal perspective, individual responses varying in
situations.
Most people like
feeling useful. I am one. But it should never be the reason for being, though
for some it is an essential driving emotion.
The man was an
energetic determined person that accomplished admirable goals in the face of
adversities. The Great Depression for one. Though as a boy I didn’t understand
and consequently didn’t think much of it at the time, he told me “When I don’t
feel useful anymore, I don’t want to live.”
As he grew old
his body developed problems that curtailed his favored activities. He
compensated by initiating a large vegetable garden plus a few other less
demanding pursuits. Within a few years they became too difficult and he
curtailed them.
After age 80 he
required hospitalized “adjustments” to his lifestyle. During his last hospitalization
he decided the “Useful?” question, and refused sustenance even when the staff
allowed his favorite foods and drinks brought in.
It took 6 weeks
for my beloved father to die of malnutrition.
Feelings are
largely a matter of perspective, individual responses varying in situations.
EBB4
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