Friday, March 11, 2011

Lessons from the Edge

Holding hands is nice.

It's so interesting to watch the men and women at Edgewood interact with one another. While some are very needy, others are so very willing to be the care-givers. One woman in particular, can often be found pushing someone around in a wheelchair, or talking to a lonely soul, or looking after a variety of other needs. She's a sweetheart! (One of my favorite residents, no doubt!)
"C" has long been concerned about the well-being of her dear friend, "M". I often see the two of them together and hear C trying to encourage M to cheer up, or look up, and certainly to not give up.
But this week I saw something I haven't seen before.
The two of them walking around holding hands.
C lead M all around, talking to her about the things they could do and commenting on various things they saw as they meandered. It was charming. :o)
Well, one day the two of them were walking down the hall ahead of me and paused as I caught up to them. They stepped aside to let me pass. But I stopped, too. And held out my hand to M. I said, "If you don't mind, I'd like to hold hands and walk with you, too."

So that's what we did. The three of us held hands and walked down the hall.

No deep conversations.
We didn't solve any of the world's problems.
Didn't even solve any of our own problems.

We just walked a bit and held hands. And that was lovely.

Because holding hands is nice.

Karen

5 comments:

Leah Adams said...

That is so precious!!! Oh my gosh, what a simple gesture. The power of touch is amazing. This makes me want to go find someone to walk and hold hands with.

Leah

Karen Hossink said...

Leah - Yes. There is a power in touch. And it's simple. I try to do a lot of touching at Edgewood - rubbing shoulders as I pass someone, or patting an arm when I stop to talk. But walking and holding hands was even more delightful. :o)

Patricia said...

I love this!! And I bet that meant the world to them too!

Holding hands IS nice!! And we are so blessed that HE holds our hands everyday! :)

Have a GREAT weekend, my friend!

BASSakward Tales said...

The human touch is a powerful thing...when my grandmother was dying, I could just put my hand in hers and her breathing would slow down...thanks for reminding us of this...hugs

Karen Hossink said...

Patricia - Both C and M have memory lapses, so I'm not sure they remember that walk we took. But I know they know I love them, and that's really all that matters.

Ginny - What a beautiful memory! I'm sure she was glad for your presence and touch.