“A Person Is Old When…”
There are many things about my job that I really enjoy. The co-workers at the Southwestern Commission are great! We work well together. As a collective unit we are a good team. Through our agency we are able to direct and manage many services and programs for the older adults in the seven counties that comprise the most western region here in these beautiful mountains of North Carolina. The services and programs we provide meet many of the needs of the older adults who live here. From adult day programs, to senior centers, to transportation services, to congregate meals, to respite services for caregivers, to in-home aids, to support groups, to information and referrals, to advocacy for issues on behalf of seniors, to assistance with the preparation of important legal documents and advanced health care directives, to seeking to improve the quality of care the residents of the long term health care facilities; we are about some real vital stuff. The folks living in this area are just wonderful! Having the opportunity to work with such a wide variety of knowledgeable, experienced, seasoned, insightful, and focused people is really exciting. An additional bonus, for me, is the chance to work with folks from other agencies, programs, and institutions in combined efforts to have a positive impact in this whole region for the older adults that call these mountains “home”. I never feel as though I am just spending my time. Rather, I am investing my time doing things that really matter.
A particularly enjoyable part of my job is facilitating programs and sessions designed to enhance “aging sensitivity”. I get to go to high schools, community colleges, WCU, long term care facilities, senior centers, and so forth to help the participants get a “feel” for what it is like to be an older adult. I usually begin the session by placing six “Easel Pad Post-it” posters on the walls where the session is being held. On each of the posters I have written the beginning of a sentence. Each of the participants are instructed to take a “Sharpie” (marker) and write whatever they want to on the posters as a way of completing the sentences. I stress that there are no right or wrong answers and that is does not matter what they write; they are able to put whatever comes to their minds on the poster. The sentences read as follows:
- “A person is old when…”
- “Most older people are…”
- “The most valuable lessons older people have to teach are…”
- “The things I look forward to the most about growing older are…”
- “The things I dread the most about growing older are…”
- “A person is aging well when…”
Needless to say, the responses of the participants are really interesting. For the most part, the things they write are positive. Sometimes they are downright humorous. At times the responses are “painfully” accurate. I always enjoy going over their statements, if possible, identifying the author of the statements, and engaging them in a discussion as to the reason(s) behind their statements. It often makes for a good time together; hopefully, thought provoking and a learning experience. While I often get similar responses to the statements I occasionally get one that is different, that I had not thought of previously. After debriefing the statements we do all sorts of things like putting on large gloves, opening pill bottles, sorting out medicines, trying on various pairs of “paper glasses” (simulation of various eye diseases), walking around with small bags of popcorn in their shoes (simulation of feet and leg ailments), and then brushing the teeth of other participants. We have a good time!
One of the frequent responses that appears on the posters in response to the statement “A person is old when…” is “…they have wrinkles”. Certainly, wrinkles are often a by-product of aging. In a recent session where that response appeared I recalled an old joke, attributed to Chet Atkins of “Grand Ole Opry” fame. I was listening to the Opry on the radio one night while driving. Chet Atkins said, “There were these two old men that lived in a nursing home. They spent their days sitting in their wheelchairs in one of the hallways, just observing those that went past them. Most of the time they said nothing at all. There were two ladies that shared a room together, near the end of the hall. They were bothered by the inattentiveness of the men. Of course, they were lonely and wanted some attention from the opposite sex. They started trying to come up with some idea as to a way to try to see if they could do something to get the old men to say something or to interact in some way. After a while they came up with a plan. The two ladies went into their rooms, removed all of their clothes, got their walkers, went out into the hall and strolled by the men in as a ‘sexually suggestive manner’ as they possibly could. Shortly after passing by the men they heard the men speaking to each other. They stopped in order to be able to hear what was being said. One of the men asked the other, ‘Did you see that?’ The other man said, ‘Yeah. I reckon I did.’ The first man said, ‘Well, what did they have on?’ The second man responded, ‘I don’t rightly know. But whatever it was it shore did need to be ironed.’” 9/14/2016