By Christine Crosby
As a grandparent, one of my goals is to every day learn how to age “gratefully”. I first leaned that term from A Guide to Aging Gratefully; a book written by grandparent, Naomi Judd. 
She was selected as one of GRAND Magazine Sexiest Celebrity Grandparents and shortly thereafter she wrote this book. In the first paragraph she thanks GRAND for the recognition and goes on to share her wonderful philosophy on aging.
I think one of the best ways to age gratefully is to let go of the negatives. You skin will glow, your eyes will shine, you’ll breathe better and there will be a smile on your face most of the day.
One of the most important lessons we hope to have learned by the time we become grands is not only discovering what we want; maybe more important, what we don’t want. Recognizing and acting on these insights can lessen your load by eliminating all the negative baggage you’ve gathered over your lifetime.
The following quote is circulating on the Internet as attributed to Meryl Streep, however, they are the words of Jose Micard Teixeira. I think they could be a grandparent’s creed.
“I no longer have patience for certain things, not because I’ve become arrogant, but simply because I reached a point in my life where I do not want to waste more time with what displeases me or hurts me.
I have no patience for cynicism, excessive criticism and demands of any nature. I lost the will to please those who do not like me, to love those who do not love me and to smile at those who do not want to smile at me.
I no longer spend a single minute on those who lie or want to manipulate. I decided not to coexist anymore with pretense, hypocrisy, dishonesty and cheap praise. I do not tolerate selective erudition nor academic arrogance.
I do not adjust either to popular gossiping. I hate conflict and comparisons. I believe in a world of opposites and that’s why I avoid people with rigid and inflexible personalities.
In friendship I dislike the lack of loyalty and betrayal. I do not get along with those who do not know how to give a compliment or a word of encouragement. Exaggerations bore me and I have difficulty accepting those who do not like animals.
And on top of everything I have no patience for anyone who does not deserve my patience.”
