Every Wednesday, after the 7:30 am Healing Mass, I go visit the sick and shut-in with a group of ladies. Today Mrs. Walker and Mrs. Drake went with me to visit Mrs. Hamilton at her home and then on to see Mrs. Archibold. Our last stop was the Cordoba Home, a rest home around the corner from Mrs. Archibold. We used to visit Cordoba Home because we had three parishioners living there. They have passed away but we still go there every two months or so as we have become close to the folks. We also visit the Katherine Brown Home and Tender Loving Care Home. TLC Home isn't that cooperative; they are a Seventh Day Adventist institution and they really don't like Episcopalians coming in with our wine and all. The folks at the Cordoba Home love to sing, and they know all the Bible verses we read and say them along while we read them. We do a bilingual service there; I switch between español and english. After Communion I anoint each person with oil and pray with them. We also bring the Reserved Sacrament and oil to Mrs. Cordoba, the owner of the home, who had a stroke last year. She's coming around quite well and looks better every time we visit.
The first two photos are of the residents gathering for the service. The last photo is of Albert and his new harmonica. The harmonica is red, like his shirt. He always accompanies us on his harmonica. We usually start with me choosing the hymns, and then Albert starts suggesting a few, and then he just starts playing whatever he wants, and then I finally ask him to stop for a minute so that we can pray and continue with the service. It's a lot of fun! I always give him a dollar afterwards, since as a former church musician I believe in paying the musicians (he spends the money on ice cream, or so he claims. But you know church musicians!).
4 comments:
"shut in." What are shut in?
The phrase used here in the West Indian community is "sick and shut in." I figure that the shut ins are those who are unable to get out to church due to problems with mobility.
The Lutheran home where my folks used to live had hymn singing once a month. One man with Alzheimers always brought his harmonica. He couldn't carry on a conversation but he could play most of the hymns from memory.
Shutin is one word around here.
Thanks for this. Albert is one handsome man. I like the lady to his lower right, too.
My friend's father who is an elder Lutheran with Alzheimer's is in a residential care place, and it's Lutheran so they have services with lots of hymns, and he always calms down and cheers up when the hymns come. He no longer has memory or many other of his mental capacities, but he knows the hymns and he plugs right in.
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