A Selfless Love
It’s amazing to me, when we are born we cannot take care of ourselves and for some the last few years are spent being taken care of by others.
This month we are partnering with Straits Baptist Church and working with every ministry they have! The past few days my team and I have been at ACE nursing home, playing bingo, coloring, singing, dancing, walking, talking and preparing lunches with the elderly of Melaka.
We led exercises, shared testimonies and sang songs together before Alice; the director shared with us their stories and why they were here. That’s when I met Mary. I have had plenty of practice looking after “old people” because of my time with my grandpa as he suffered from Alzheimer’s.
Mary also suffers from this terrible disease, but she always had a smile tattooed to her face. When it was time to go for our walks, the staff gave me a heads up because Mary was known for being an escape artist. We walked for a bit, she picked a flower and put it in my hair; her personality was sweet, but feisty, just like my grandpa.
This nursing home is EXTREMELY under staffed and those who work there get worn out quickly. My grandpa had a secret love of playing games so I brought out the bingo cards and that’s what we played. Mary, her friends, and I played round after round. I sat with Mary, scratching her back game after game. She would occasionally look over and just smile. My heart was full.
I know I can’t do anything to bring my grandpa back, but I can love Mary like I loved grandpa.
Although the staff is out numbered, they have so much love and care for their patients.
Just as this staff selflessly takes care of their clients, my grandma did the same for my grandpa. I remember one night after dinner he got up and went to my grandma standing at the sink and asked her to go home. He did this most days, as it was part of his Sundown Syndrome. My grandma has the patience of a saint, would stand there day in and day out reminding him that he was home, she would show him their bedroom, remind him that she was his wife and she was taking care of him. They had a selfless kind of love.
This month I’m back on the international –do- everything -team as we are partnering with so many different ministries, but I am thankful that we had these few days to take care of those who once took care of us.
Hug your loved ones tight; you never know how long you’ll have with them.
