Accept... without regret.
Maybe easier said than done, but we've had enough experience now, dealing with many older folks in our CCRC to see the ones who are still enjoying life, and those who have given up, and have become negative and unhappy.
You would think that those who are the healthiest would also be the happiest. Yeah, to some extent, but it's really more of how well the happier people can accept their infirmities and disappointments.
I'm reminded of the story about the study of the two boys who are placed in a one way mirrored room.
The first boy is in the room with all sorts of toys and fun things to do. He sits in the corner for an hour and touches nothing. When he comes out the psychologist asks him why he didn't play. "Because I was afraid that if I touched anything, I'd break it and then I'd be in trouble."
The second boy is placed in a room filled with two feet of horse manure. To everyone's surprise, he dives and for an hour crawls around, tossing the manure up in the air, laughing all the way. When they drag him out, the amazed psychologist asks why the boy seemed to have so much fun in such an awful situation.
"With all that horses**t, there's gotta be pony in there somewhere and I'm gonna find him."
.............................................................................
And so it goes in our real life situation. With the aches and pains and illnesses of old age, and the steady decline of the mind and body in later life, it isn't always health that leads to happiness, but acceptance of what will naturally happen.
So there are happy people and sad people, and most think that they are born that way. That's where I differ. I think acceptance and happiness can be
learned.