Our Time With Friends

As soon as we walk into the building with our little family it causes people to smile. We come here about once a month and everytime our kids are such a pleasure to the older folks. We set up chairs and the girls run around giggling. While people pass they pause or sit down to watch the kids being silly. I wonder to myself how long its been since they've seen kids play. The chairs are set up, our boy gets the Hymn books and we wait for our little group to arrive. Slowly they start coming. Lucielle, Edna, Hellen, Cap... Friendly familiar faces. Its always sad when one is missing, Ruth wasnt there. We ask where she is, shes either passed away or gone on to the nursing home because she needs more care. I get a little stab in my heart, I'll miss seeing her and having her tell me she was once a teacher. Some shuffle with stooped shoulders, others walk with a walker, and some need to be pushed in a wheelchair. The girls still run around laughing and as the men and women are seated they smile and talk amongst themselves about our kids. "Oh look at them play, arent they cute?" "Look at the little one, she does everything her sister does" "The little boy hands out the books and shakes our hands" And on and on the comments go. It makes me happy that our kids can give them some joy. As each person sits the kids take them a Hymnal and say hello. After everyone has a song book we turn the pages. Some need help finding the numbers so my hubby goes around and makes sure everyone has found their spot. We start to sing, young voices and old mix together in an odd beauty. There are voices that are several words behind, some that crackel, and there is one young and loud raspy voice coming from our baby girl as she "sings" along. I see some of the ladies smiling at our young one as she belts out her own melody. I hear one lady say "She looks just like her sister did at her age" and am shocked that a nearly 100 year old lady can remember a detail like that. The singing ends so I gather the kids and take them into the sun room while my hubby leads them in a time of Bible study. The kids play and are a bit noisy but when I peek out the glass doors no one seems to mind. Then its time to go home. We brought flowers for a late Mothers Day thank you for all the moms, grandmas, and great grandmas. The kids gather the books and hand out flowers. Everyone is very pleased especially since the kids handed them out, even some grandpas received flowers today. One shuffles off immediately to put his in water. No one seems to want to go, they linger and look at the kids, some coax them over and the kids show them some treasure that they found, we go around the circle and say thank you for coming. As people leave they say "Come back again... Make sure you bring these little ones with you." We assure them that we will. Slowly one by one they leave. One lady stays and talks for awhile. Tiny keeps bringing her flower petals from the ground. We move the chairs back to the places they go. We get the kids and load them into the car. Again Im struck with the thought, as I am each time we visit the assisted living home, that we came to be a blessing to these people and I always leave feeling blessed myself. Im thankful to have the opportunity to meet with and talk to these people who still have so much to offer.