One 91-Year-Old’s Advice on How to Live Life
A viral photo reveals a story about finding happiness with age
By Emily Gurnon
Mary Wyatt Petersen and her husband, Bill, were having their picture taken with Santa at Tonkadale Greenhouse near Minneapolis when Santa invited Mary to kiss him on the cheek.
“Pretty soon, I’m into it,” she told reporter Boyd Hupert of KARE11 news.
A photo taken by Mary’s daughter of the delightful moment has resonated on social media.
Mary, 91, and Bill, 93, found each other in their 70s, after each had lost a spouse. She was reluctant to love again, she said.
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But in the end, she made a decision.
“Look for happiness,” Mary said.
See the video of their story below.
Emily Gurnon is the former Senior Content Editor covering health and caregiving for Next Avenue. Her stories include a series of articles on guardianship abuse that was funded by the Journalists in Aging Fellows Program. She previously spent 20 years as an award-winning newspaper reporter in the San Francisco Bay Area and St. Paul. Reach her through her website. Read More
