The Sprit of Giving

I know it is always better to give than to receive but it really hit home with"my people". The residents in my home were not called residents when I started this . They were and always will be "my people". This was my family and I treated them like family. We laughed together and of course there were times when we cried together.

When holidays came it was very hard on the ones who did not have any relatives or friends calling on them or sending cards. You cannot imagine, dear reader, how important those cards were to them. It meant someone cared where they were and missed them. To not receive a card would be very hard, but I had an answer for that. The Department of Adult Services in my area always came through if I called with a problem. Someone would come calling on my people and they always brought more gifts than we needed. Of course Sister Lauren from Catholic Family Services would drop by with more gifts. Than came the other churches and there would be so much for these beautiful people. The churches also sent the Youth Choir to sing and I always cried at the beauty of this. They would take "requests" from the folks and it was just unbelievably beautiful. There were times when someone would get depressed and I had a great answer for them. I would tell them if they wanted to cry we would all get together next Tuesday at the table with a box of Kleenex and just cry. I said I didn't have time today because I would have red eyes to match my hair and that wasn't good. It always seemed to work.

There was one person who came to visit her father-in-law and she brought two children with her. I said ti the children " I bet your waiting for Santa to come" and the lady got so mad!!!! She informed me that she never lied to her children and they knew better than to believe in such stupidity!!. I was really shocked but said I was sorry but we believed in Santa and that was the end of the conversation. After she left her father-in-law said he was sorry she was rude but that he hoped Santa would find him!!. I gave him a big hug and said I was sure he would and of course he did.!!!

One of the things my people enjoyed a lot was decorating. Some would hang things and others supervised. When it came to the tree they all managed to help in one way or another. One year we had decorated the tree and it was so beautiful with all the trim and lights. One lady, who used a walker, was walking past the tree on her way to the dinner table, lost her balance and fell on the tree!! I must tell you, dear reader, that I laughed so hard----she was not hurt --but if you can imagine this lady who was 5'7" weighed about 200 , on the floor with part of the tree, with the lights still on, on her you would laugh also.

On Christmas morning ,while having breakfast, it was always mentioned who heard the noises on the roof last night, or who was peeking!! These people were just like kids and I loved all of it.

I do hope someone enjoys this because it is so nice to share my memories of all the years gone by-------

Love, Red

The day before Christmas

The day before Christmas I was thinking back to when I got a phone call on the day before Christmas. . I had only been in business of caring for the elderly for 18 months but word spread fast and I had 7 residents by now. I had only planned to have 5 but here is another rule . I made a Golden Rule that I would never turn anyone away weather they could pay or not. That story is for another time, dear reader.When I answered the phone it was Sister Lauren, with the Catholic Family Community Services,and she was looking for a bed!! Surprise! Surprise! She was at the Saratoga Hospital and was trying to find a place for an 88 year old woman . The lady had been beaten and raped and than managed to crawl, in the snow and cold, two blocks for help. The people called 911 and she was taken to the hospital. The Dr.'s said she needed to go to a facility for permanent care. She had been living in a shack with dirt floors and depending on "friends" for help. These so called friends would charge her $5.00 for a loaf of bread so she really was in a terrible situation. Her husband had died when he was 28 from a heart attack and she never re-married. She had her Veterans Pension & Social Security which amounted to about $450.00 a month.When Sister Lauren asked if I had an extra bed I said of course. Do you think I could say no on Christmas Eve? I am not sure how I done it but she brought Verna to my house. Verna was a tiny lady about 4'10" and probably weighed 90 pounds. When she came into the house she was so shocked because she had never been in a house with floors let alone carpets. She just glowed like a child looking at the decorations. It made everyone happy just to watch her. When we got her ready for her bath she was so scared. It seems she had never seen a tub or shower before so it was interesting. She had a nice warm bath and had her hair washed. IT was so long but I managed to wash and dry it. The drier really fascinated her!! I noticed she was getting very upset and I asked her what was wrong. She said she was afraid I would send her back to where she had been living in the morning. I reassured her she would always be with me. The next morning when the residents had finished breakfast we gathered in the living room for the opening of the gifts. When I handed her a gift she just cried. It seems she had not received anything in years and could not understand how there was a gift for her there. I told her I knew she was going to receive gifts because I had caught a glimpse of Santa just as he was leaving!! That was one of many happy Christmas's we had at Miner's Home for the Elderly.
Love to all, Red



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