Friday, October 27, 2017

It's Just a Number!

The workings of the human mind will never cease to amaze me. Nearly all humans have brains of relatively the same shape, size, and capacity. We all are born with brains, we grow, we learn, and it is a fact that as we age we all forget.
Somehow and somewhere in our lifetimes, something happens to our brains. A few of us go through the aging process without skipping a beat and we continue to retain most of our memory and intelligence, until we die. Others of us, forget everything we have ever learned or known. We forget who we are and we forget who we have been. We don't recognize family and friends. The human brain is one thing that our best medical doctors and scientific minds have not yet deciphered.
Yesterday, I was conversing with a resident's daughter. The resident and his daughter are really special people.  Their relationship is full of love and care for each other. In the short time, that I have known these two, it has been very obvious that our resident's memory is slowly fading. Many facts and details have been lost, forever.
But guess what? Even though he cannot remember what he ate for breakfast, he can automatically recite his G.I. Serial Number from World War II. That's well over 50 years ago!
How does that happen? Why does that happen? Well, it happens!
So, remember dear souls, that within each and every one of us there will always be a bit of a spark of who we once were. What a joy it is to find that small glimmer. We should never stop searching for it.

Great and all powerful God. We are your creatures. You alone know all of the answers. Help us to travel on toward the unknown and help others along this journey. May we always remember Whose we are. We are blessed.

Thursday, October 26, 2017

De liver de letter, de sooner de better!

The mail person finally delivered our resident mail just after 7 p.m., last night. That's really late. The daily delivery of the mail is extremely important, to our residents. Not only do they want their mail delivered, they want it delivered in a timely fashion. Furthermore, they would like it delivered at the same time, every day.
I have tried to explain the likelihood of that happening, but it is not what our seniors want to hear. Daily, I hear about the good old days when mail delivery was trustworthy and routine. It seems that years ago,when you could mail a first class letter for only three cents, the mail was always delivered, everyday at the same time.
Maybe this is true. Maybe it's not.  But, our residents remember it that way. It doesn't make any difference to me. I just know, that we would all be happier if the mail would just come before 7 p.m.

Great Lord. Help us dwell on the positive things in our lives. We are never going to have things totally the way we want them. We can't have our way all of the time. Life's greatest lesson, is that YOU are in charge. We must let things go that we cannot control. Let go and let God.


Friday, October 13, 2017

"Hi Ho, Hi Ho. You're never too old to be young."

I think Disney's seven dwarfs had it right. You are never to old to do something new.
Three of our residents.....ages between 80 and 90 years young, went skydiving yesterday. All of them raved about the experience. They loved it and no one was harmed during the filming of the event!  Then, another resident (this one a mere 92) is, in my opinion, the best pie baker on the planet. She's an expert and has been baking great pies for many years. But, the remarkable thing is that she is still doing it. And, she bakes them to give away. When she's not baking, she is fashioning hats...hundreds of handmade hats for newborns.....for a local hospital nursery. Just another thing that she has been doing for years!
One of the many advantages of being in daily contact with 80 and 90 year old folks, is that there is so much I can learn from them. They show me every day that staying young at heart and well in spirit and body, takes work. It takes action. Doing new things or continuing to do familiar things, makes life worth living.

Precious Lord. We are thankful for life. Help us to realize our potential and to share our blessings with others.