Wise words on living life from Americans in their 70s, 80s and 90s. A sample:

A 75-year-old man said, “You are not responsible for all the things that happen to you, but you are completely in control of your attitude and your reactions to them.”


An 84-year-old said, “Adopt a policy of being joyful.” Even if their lives were nine decades long, the elders saw life as too short to waste on pessimism, boredom and disillusionment.







"A 75-year-old man said, 'You are not responsible for all the things that happen to you, but you are completely in control of your attitude and your reactions to them.' An 84-year-old said, 'Adopt a policy of being joyful.'

The 90-year-old daughter of divorced parents who had lived a hardscrabble life said, 'I learned to be grateful for what I have, and no longer bemoan what I don’t have or can’t do.'"