By SANDI PETERS, The buzz word for facilities that house older adults today is ‘community’. Corporate America has caught on that providing a well-appointed environment is insufficient to foster quality of life. The new trend seems to re-brand themselves as a ‘community’. Let’s look at what that word means. The word ‘communis’ is a combination … Continue reading
Tag Archives: end of life
FALLING IS A PART OF LIFE: The Perils of Protection
By SANDI PETERS, In 2004 I was working in a nursing home. I had just started and was unsure of the culture. Each morning the routine was for management to meet in what is called a ‘stand up’ where each department reports the work plan for the day and also advises others of any … Continue reading
Medical Clown
Six months ago, my supervisor burst in the middle of my music group at the psychiatric hospital: “We have two clowns visiting, can they come in? –Of course!” Two grinning youthful men popped into the day room; one wearing a monkey suit, the other dressed in short striped pants with suspenders, colorful socks with a … Continue reading
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
email: Olga to Greg, Dec 4 at 11am Hi Greg, Alma’s birthday is on December 7, right on the day of your weekly community meeting. Would you celebrate her, if she attends? I am working that day. I can coordinate with the team to help and encourage Alma to show up. Conversation with Alma, Dec … Continue reading
PIAGET, The Very Fascinating Problem of Knowledge
“Young children cannot achieve the mental operation necessary for thorough comprehension of numbers. A 4 year old child might think that two sets are equivalent in number (Set1 = Set2) if they have the same length. The child focuses on a single quality of each set: LENGTH.” Set 1: O O O O Set 2: … Continue reading
THE MEMORIAL
How to create a memorial among people who have some forgetfulness and no common language? This has been my question for years. How to remember a person when you do not remember a person? For the last months I have been reading Francis Weller’s, THE WILD EDGE OF SORROW, after attending an intense one day … Continue reading
You are my princess
“You are my princess. I am your prince charming. I come to wake you up.” Clara’s lips stretch into a soft smile. It is eleven in the morning. All dressed up, she is sleeping on top of her bed. She likes to be there during the day, lying on her back with abandon. “Clara, come … Continue reading
STAND BY ME
D-O-R-A- P-I-R-I-V-I-D-A-N-Y-I I am writing slowly on the little white board, hanging on the wall of the day room. I check if all the letters are there, even size in a straight line. I don’t want to make a mistake. I don’t want somebody to think I did not care; that I did not love … Continue reading
Activity
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
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
Soul2Soul Seniors 