DEAR ABBY: I read with interest and amusement how the sounds of the ice-cream truck affected the woman in Seattle. I have a story that may help.
Abby, my father-in-law will be 96 on July 11, and I'm still learning about the beauty of life from him.
My husband and I spent a Sunday with my father-in-law recently. As I usually do, I wandered into his back yard to weed, pick fruit and enjoy nature. The music blaring from two or three houses away was so loud I had to shout to be heard. I thought it was annoying, obnoxious and very inconsiderate. I asked my father-in-law if the music bothered him. Then I noticed he was swaying to the beat. "Oh, no!" he replied. "It lets me know I'm alive." It's all in one's perspective.
My husband has a severe hearing loss from factory noise. He can no longer hear birds, crickets, bells or whistles. He would love to trade places and be able to hear ice-cream trucks or the subtle sounds of nature's music. As a person with normal hearing, my first reaction to the loud music was annoyance, but perhaps I should be more like my husband and my father-in-law. -- MRS. GALLEGOS IN LONG BEACH, CALIF.
DEAR MRS. GALLEGOS: Your father-in-law practices a philosophy to which I have long adhered: "When life hands you a lemon, make lemonade." Good for him, and you as well for learning so quickly the lesson this wise man offered.