The first day of school our professor 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 around 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. Can 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?" I asked.
She jokingly replied, "I'm here to meet a rich husband, get married, have a
couple of children, and then retire and travel."
"No seriously," I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to be taking
on this 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 non-stop. 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 easily made friends
wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she revelled 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 and
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 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 humour 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 the 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 years 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.
Author unknown. If anyone has a proprietary interest in this story please
authenticate and I will be happy to credit, or remove, as the circumstances
dictate.
Thanks to David Young
editor@coffeeintherain.com
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