Ida is lying in bed, on her back, eyes closed. Would she like to feel the sunshine? Are the window shades drawn because the bright light was bothering her? She is blind and very hard of hearing. She sometimes wears hearing aids but not in bed. I observe one of her arms, naked on top … Continue reading
Author Archives: 0dile
PARO the Personal Robot
See below an excerpt from the French Radio Program PARO ET L’ANGOISSE DE LA PERTE DE MEMOIRE (PARO, and the Anxiety of Memory Loss) broadcasted 2/17/2016. The group sessions recorded for the program are part of a 7 months pilot study. It took place in the locked memory care unit of the Corentin Celton, Hospital, … Continue reading
ANGRY
Elsa was having a fairly good day watching “Rick Steves Italy” She seemed interested by the colorful displays of pasta dishes, regional costumes and constant optimism of the host blowing out kisses from a gondola. Her mood darkened around 3pm, when she returned from the bathroom. She started calling out in Russian: “Papa! Papa!” To … Continue reading
The Great Unlearning
Below is the final statement from Gisela Webb’s 2001 article INTIMATIONS OF THE GREAT UNLEARNING: INTERRELIGIOUS SPIRITUALITY AND THE DEMISE OF CONSCIOUSNESS WHICH IS ALZHEIMER’S I can’t stop rereading her 5000+ words. They approach thoughts I wish I would be able to articulate. I plan to explore all her references… “I call Alzheimer’s the great … Continue reading
Stranded in Atlanta
–”That’s not right. –What is happening? –They don’t want to give me a ticket. –You seem very frustrated. –Yes, I am. I flew across the whole country and now I am stuck in Atlanta. I am going to Savannah. –How long have you been here? –Since yesterday night. –Did that ever happened to you? –I … Continue reading
NEBRASKA a Validation Fairy Tale
I watched the movie NEBRASKA, because the score’s composer and interprets come from the S.F. Bay Area. We have crossed paths here and there. What surprise to discover that the storyline depicts the successive and successful phases of a validating intervention. First coms the fear: if I say “Yes” what is going to happen? I … Continue reading
ON THE FLOOR
I enter the communal room where I was scheduled to play accordion. I see three staff members gathered around a body lying on the floor. Did someone just fall? Are they waiting for a nurse to assess the situation? Walking closer, I recognize the patient. K. lies on her side, a pillow under the head. … Continue reading
I need to see my mother
“I need to see my mother!” In the middle of the communal day room, D. stands up from her wheelchair. D. was admitted less than a week ago. We are not sure about her balance. She is not sure either. She has already told me some of her history. Both of her parents spent their … Continue reading
Monet refuses the operation
Doctor, you say there are no haloes around the streetlights in Paris and what I see is an aberration caused by old age, an affliction. I tell you it has taken me all my life to arrive at the vision of gas lamps as angels, to soften and blur and finally banish the edges you … Continue reading
Far from Brooklyn
«I have to go. I need to go home. It’s getting late. My family does not know where I am. I should call my mother. I feel bad that I did not call her. She must wonder where I am. Maybe she is dead. She is very old. –When was the last time you saw … Continue reading
Soul2Soul Seniors 