Donna

 

For me, sitting next to Donna in the Assisted Living home each Sunday for our church meeting is both an honor and a privilege. She barely makes a sound when we sing the hymns together.  I am amazed that she has every hymnal memorized. She really doesn’t need a hymnbook to read, but she seems more at ease with it in her hand even though she never glances at the words.  She is simply amazing as she smiles and opens her mouth precisely at the right time. Every time she sings, I feel humbled by the faint sound she makes. She hardly ever misses a word while I struggle to sing soft enough not to be embarrassed with my inability to harmonize.

Her body and mind may feel the effects of old age, but she is as sharp as a tack.  I started to doze off during the speaker’s talk, and she nudged me.  I was embarrassed and quickly held my head up. She whispered and nodded her head, “He will think that you live here”.

She told me today that she had finished putting together a 1000 piece puzzle and that it had only taken her a week.  Oh, she was proud of that accomplishment.  She grinned from ear to ear after I told her that I had seen it. After we admired the puzzle together, I said that if I were lucky, it would have taken me a month to piece together. She sparkled as she held my hand and said that if she could do it, then I could as well.

The memories that the elderly cherish are usually those about their dear and precious family. She proudly told me about some of the accomplishments of her children, grandchildren and great-grand children. Most of them lived close by the assisted living. She told me how much she loved them and they loved her and that she looked forward to seeing them each week. This week, one her great-granddaughters will have her baptism, and she is going to leave the home for a few hours and go with her family to witness the sacred ordinance.

As I parted after the meeting, I gently touched both of her frail shoulders and said that I loved her.  In the assisted living home, friendship with the patients can become more of a sacred honor than a duty or a church calling.  One truly learns the sacred value of the scripture,

 

Matthew 25:40,   “And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me”.

Tags: Elderly Love Blessings Service

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