I went to an old age home a couple of days ago, for the first time in my life. It's just a couple of streets down from my house.
There was an old cocker spaniel in the vicinity of the home, kept chained up. It started barking when we arrived and it looked so weak.
When we walked inside the first thing that hit me was the smell. It was a foul. I felt extremely uncomfortable and upon seeing an elderly woman lying on a table towards the end of the room- with wires hooked up to her, I just couldn't bear to stand there.
I headed back outside to get my bearings. I told myself that what I was worried about didn't really matter. So I went back in.
There were six people in all: four downstairs and two upstairs. The woman sitting closest to the door looked very ill and her nightie was a mess. She told my Mom that she'd like some juice when asked if she needed anything. Her mannerisms were so innocent and child-like as she signaled 'juice' by putting her thumb to her mouth. She mentioned some type of fruit juice but it has slipped my mind.
When Mom and Grandma moved on to speak with the other elderly folk, the juice lady called me towards her. Her speech was slightly fuddled and her hearing a little impaired. I noticed that the staff had to raise their voices to speak to her so I did the same.
She asked me if Mom was my mother or sister and then where I was from. I told her we lived nearby. Then she asked if I had any siblings and I told her I had a little sister. For a couple of seconds she didn't say anything. I smiled and just stood there
She suddenly took my hand. I thought she would hold it but instead she kissed the back of my hand.
This small gesture drove me to tears. I tried my best to hold them in.
I felt so sad to see them like that and prayed to God that I would study well and get a good job so I could take care of more people like her.
Another woman told us that even though she had a daughter and son in-law (or was it the other way around) it didn't make much of a difference because they never visited.
I had an image in my mind of her as a young woman raising her child. How would she have felt to know that child would grow up and leave her in an old age home?
My problem with people who put their parents in homes like this is that they don't even bother to visit.
I try not to think the worst of people. So I tried to reason with what these people (who put these elderly in homes) might have been going through. Okay, maybe they don't have financial stability to take care of their needs. Maybe they have a housing problem or in-laws problem.
Hmm.
Okay, I can understand a situation in which you do not have the means to take care of them.
But what next?
You just leave them there?!
They are humans too. You can't just dump them there and go on with your life. It doesn't hurt you or your pocket to visit them. They are your parents after all, not strangers!
Anyway, there was also a blind old man who looked frail. He barely had any skin on his bones. When asked what he wanted from us, he replied that they would accept anything that we gave. (:
All in all, I'm glad I finally visited an old age home. We will be headed back next month with food and clothes. (From the Charitable trust I work for)
There was an old cocker spaniel in the vicinity of the home, kept chained up. It started barking when we arrived and it looked so weak.
When we walked inside the first thing that hit me was the smell. It was a foul. I felt extremely uncomfortable and upon seeing an elderly woman lying on a table towards the end of the room- with wires hooked up to her, I just couldn't bear to stand there.
I headed back outside to get my bearings. I told myself that what I was worried about didn't really matter. So I went back in.
There were six people in all: four downstairs and two upstairs. The woman sitting closest to the door looked very ill and her nightie was a mess. She told my Mom that she'd like some juice when asked if she needed anything. Her mannerisms were so innocent and child-like as she signaled 'juice' by putting her thumb to her mouth. She mentioned some type of fruit juice but it has slipped my mind.
When Mom and Grandma moved on to speak with the other elderly folk, the juice lady called me towards her. Her speech was slightly fuddled and her hearing a little impaired. I noticed that the staff had to raise their voices to speak to her so I did the same.
She asked me if Mom was my mother or sister and then where I was from. I told her we lived nearby. Then she asked if I had any siblings and I told her I had a little sister. For a couple of seconds she didn't say anything. I smiled and just stood there
She suddenly took my hand. I thought she would hold it but instead she kissed the back of my hand.
This small gesture drove me to tears. I tried my best to hold them in.
I felt so sad to see them like that and prayed to God that I would study well and get a good job so I could take care of more people like her.
Another woman told us that even though she had a daughter and son in-law (or was it the other way around) it didn't make much of a difference because they never visited.
I had an image in my mind of her as a young woman raising her child. How would she have felt to know that child would grow up and leave her in an old age home?
My problem with people who put their parents in homes like this is that they don't even bother to visit.
I try not to think the worst of people. So I tried to reason with what these people (who put these elderly in homes) might have been going through. Okay, maybe they don't have financial stability to take care of their needs. Maybe they have a housing problem or in-laws problem.
Hmm.
Okay, I can understand a situation in which you do not have the means to take care of them.
But what next?
You just leave them there?!
They are humans too. You can't just dump them there and go on with your life. It doesn't hurt you or your pocket to visit them. They are your parents after all, not strangers!
Anyway, there was also a blind old man who looked frail. He barely had any skin on his bones. When asked what he wanted from us, he replied that they would accept anything that we gave. (:
All in all, I'm glad I finally visited an old age home. We will be headed back next month with food and clothes. (From the Charitable trust I work for)
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