Today I visited a parishioner in a care facility. I've visited her many times over the last two years, beginning with the elegant apartment where she took Katy and me to lunch, then, as she declined cognitively, into more and more intensive care facilities. Now she's in a dementia unit.
Today I found her parked in her wheelchair in the main room where a volunteer was singing and playing old favorites on a keyboard. She told me (several times) that she wanted to get up and dance but she couldn't because she might fall.
As she loses her cognitive abilities, I think of her as losing the colors of life. What was once full of color and interest is now becoming grayer and duller. After my visit, I made a sketch of the facility in ink, and when I got home I added color. The colors cheer me up, and remind me how precious life is.
No comments:
Post a Comment