Bridging Generations – Worth the Wait!
After years of work and contributions from so many individuals, the Friends Across the Ages book, "Bridging Generations", is finally out!
Through Your Hands
Did you know that Friends Across the Ages has an official theme song? I bet you didn't (probably because I never told you). I have to give Allison credit for introducing me to this wonderful song some years ago...
The Cost of Efficiency
My Grandfather, whom I never met, was a doctor. A real old-fashioned one who treated whole families, like you’d see in a black-and-white movie. His name was Isidore Brill, but people called him “Doc”. Yes, he made house calls; even delivered babies, before they had specialists to do that. In his hometown of Champaign, Illinois, he was well known. And if you couldn’t afford to pay him, well, that was all right, you paid him when you could...
Al Lesesne and the Fire Tea
I encourage our volunteers to get outside their comfort zone, because that's where real growth can take place. I know for me, visiting the nursing home for the first time (18 years ago) was one of the biggest steps outside my comfort zone I ever took, and it changed my life forever. Getting out of your comfort zone can also be a big thrill. That's why people climb mountains and skydive. So what about our friends at the nursing home? Are they "too old" to get out of their comfort zone?
Caught vs Taught
“Children learn more from what is CAUGHT than what is TAUGHT”, or so they say. Teach your children constantly with your actions, not words. I’ve kept that in mind as I’ve raised my kids, on the lookout for opportunities as they arise. Surprisingly, I’ve gotten more out of it than the kids...
A Visit with Dee
It’s another Sunday afternoon at the nursing home. My friend Dee is waiting for me at the entrance, bouncing her birdlike frame from foot to foot, impatient for the cigarettes I promised to bring. Newport 100s, as always. I got you a present, she says, handing me a trash bag as I slip her the contraband cigarettes. Inside is cafeteria booty: two sodas, a Nutrigrain bar and a plastic fruit cup. Her wizened, nearly toothless face looks at me with expectation. Will you use it? I hope you can use it.
Dim the Lights
In nearly 18 years of hanging around the nursing home, Allison and I have had a few opportunities to practice that first line of the serenity prayer: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change”. But ugh, how difficult sometimes! I told you a few months ago about the day my nursing home friend Dan disappeared, and nobody would even tell me if he was dead or alive...
Remembering Hansford W. Farris
Christmas is a time when many of us get together with family and celebrate. However, around this time of year we also experience some sadness, as we think about past Christmas’s with family and friends who are no longer with us. Today I am missing my good friend Bill Farris, who died last December.
Where’s My Friend Dan?
Thursday, October 1st, 2015. I'm angry. I probably shouldn't write angry. I've lost my friend Dan. I don't know where he is. I don't even have a picture of Dan, or I'd put him on a milk carton. I first met Dan over 10 years ago, when he used to drive his giant 1970s car (more like a boat) over to the nursing home to visit his wife Nellie. He used to visit her daily, and would always stop to chat with me in the halls, and we became good friends.
Dear Pepper Steak, you were delicious!
One of my mom’s best stories tells of a time when she was in Grad School at the University of Florida. She lived in an apartment with two roommates who had nothing in common. One of them had made some pepper steak with noodles and left it in the refrigerator, intending to eat it the next day. But by the next day, all the pieces of pepper steak had vanished, and nothing was left but the noodles.