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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 kids..."

"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 nonstop.

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 she easily made friends wherever she went. She
loved to dress up and she reveled 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. 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 humor 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 year's 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.

When you finish reading this, please send this
peaceful word of advice to your friends and family,
they'll really enjoy it!
These words have been passed along in loving memory
of ROSE.

REMEMBER, GROWING OLDER IS MANDATORY. GROWING UP IS
OPTIONAL.

We make a Living by what we get, We make a Life by
what we give.

God promises a safe landing, not a calm passage.

If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.