Today I took communion to Mary, an elderly lady who is part of our congregation. Mary lives in an apartment for senior citizens where she is well cared for.
Mary is an elegant lady with a lovely North Carolina accent, and she takes great care in her appearance. Recently she had a slight stroke which affected one side of her face and she apologized for her drooping face and slightly slurred speech.
Mary is an artist, and her apartment walls are lined with portraits she's painted, especially portraits of her family. She shared stories with me about asking her parents if she could use the attic of their house for an art studio when she was a little girl, and how much fun it was when she got her first real oil paints and brushes. When I visit, I show her the sketches I've done recently, and we both enjoy viewing them. Today we looked at my sketchbook, had some conversation, and shared Holy Communion.
I love visits like these. I'm lucky to have a small enough church that I can make visits to parishioners in their homes and in the hospital. We also have many parishioners who visit our elderly and sick member, and that's an important lay ministry. I don't want to take that privilege away from them.
I want to visit anyone who has a terminal illness and those who are homebound for long periods of time, as a way of keeping in touch with them and assuring them they're still in the care of our church.
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