THE ULTIMATE OPTIMIST - We All Encounter Difficulties In Life. Find The Positive

Describe myself? I'm a man with one leg and a smile on his face. I've always been the ultimate optimist. In fact, my glass is always 3/4 full... or overflowing. I don't see any reason for being grumpy. What's the point of being grumpy? You only upset yourself... and in upsetting yourself, you upset other people. It doesn't do you, or anybody else, any good... at all. I'd rather be happy without a leg than grouchy with two legs. But maybe that's just me. The leg... I do sometimes tell people that it was a small shark actually that just took it off as I was ducky diving. And they believe that... even though I've got a big smile on my face when I'm saying it. They like to hear that sort of story rather than 'my artery blocked'. One evening I was sitting reading and an elephant jumped on my chest. I had an angina attack. And I lost my leg. When it happens, it's disappointing. But perhaps it was something that was meant to happen and I accepted it as that. This is my wheelchair life. You've got to accept it, like you accept life. Whatever you're going through, you've got to look on the bright side. When I woke up after the amputation, I was happy... I was happy that the pain was gone. So you can look at being happy from very different points of view. I can turn one way and there's nothing... but if I turn the other way, there is always something. There is always something good. I always used to tell my children that you shouldn't be independent. Nobody is independent. Everybody needs someone or something at any point in their life. I do the things I'm capable of. I help people with things that they're not capable of. If I'm not capable of something, I will ask somebody to help me. We all should have that... to help others and expect nothing in return. You can't expect anything from life. You are life... you can't expect anything from it. Just live it! My philosophy is that the real world is that square foot that you stand on and the person standing next to you is your best friend. And I think if everybody had that attitude we could go all the way around the world linking hands and saying, 'this guy is my best friend'. At this point in time I think the wrong people are shouting the loudest in the world because they believe that money talks. If you are "poor" or not quite as wealthy as the others, people tend to think that your voice doesn't count because you don't have the possessions they have. I have enough money for what I need. And that's basic food... an ice cream. I don't want to own a car. I don't want to own a house. I want to own my life... that's all. I take life as granted to me. And I live it as it's been granted to me. My family has a history of dying pretty young. In a few years time I'll probably be the oldest living in our family. And I'm grateful for that... the fact that I lived for twice the amount of time on this earth than my father did. To have reached my 72 year is a miracle in itself. And I've got to appreciate it. There's no reason that I'm unhappy because I've lost a leg. I've got one more leg than the guy who's got no legs. Lose an arm... is that worse than losing a leg? I don't know. I still have my mind, I still have my thoughts. And fortunately I still have a little bit of strength left. People talk about hope. You can't hope... you just do. There's nothing else I want to do... I'm doing it right now... I'm living and I'm enjoying life. I've got to accept the world, or I've got to change it. And I try and do my little bit to change it. As they say, 'It only takes one man to change the world'. I believe life is for living the best you can make of it. Just make the most of every moment. Thanks for watching this film. All the stories we've made over the last two years have only been possible because of the support that we've received from our patrons on Patreon. So if you'd like to help us keep these stories coming then check out our Green Renaissance page in the link below. Thanks a lot. Want a kiss?

Channel: Reflections of Life

Views: 170,668

Keywords: green renaissance, films, south africa, port elizabeth, optimist, glass half full, positive, handicap, wheelchair, mindful, meditation, philosophy, psychology, helping others, kindness, generosity, shark attack, lost a leg, patreon, artlist, mandela, madiba, simple life, what matters, friends, love, support, disability

Id: DJIY-wO5e-c

Length: 9min 40sec (580 seconds)

Published: Sat Jul 10 2021