Reflecting Back...

As this is to be my last blog entry, I thought I'd take a minute to look back on my volunteering experiences--not just at Passion Works, but also at the Hickory Creek nursing home and Appalachian Behavioral Healthcare.

One thing I have noticed that's common with all three of these places is that the people within them tend to be more at ease than most, despite the increased hardship that may come from their situations. It's very peculiar. For example, one time a patient in ABH dictated me a letter to his wife, with whom he hadn't spoken in months. The letter was simple and unsentimental, beseeching the wife to please call or visit. I remember thinking how if I were in his place, I would probably break down blubbering in the middle of it.

I remember, in the nursing home, seeing a man who didn't speak and needed my full assistance to play Bingo. His only form of communication, really, was smiling when the orderly would poke fun at him. And of course, it was never fake, like many of mine are in similar situations. How anyone, faced with such mental and physical decline, such debilitating disability, could find joy in the smallest of things, befuddles and yet inspires me.

Then there's Noah. I posted a video of Noah Hogan earlier explaining the fossils in his drawing. Noah uses a walker; he has to ask me to scoot him over so I can hold a picture for him to color. Or Paul. Paul's on a respirator and can barely project his voice. Or there's Jason Licht, who draws birds because he wishes to have such freedom of movement, as he's confined to a wheelchair. All of these artists at Passion Works come in at 8:00 every Friday (like the crack of dawn for me) to work and laugh and share stories, caring not about whatever conditions burden their life. In light of this, I think the label "disabled" is misleading: these people have proved to be the most able I have ever met.

As soon as I can, I'll be adding a podcast about the collages artists were making on my final day of volunteering (among other things) to this post. Stay tuned!

EDIT: Here's the podcast.