Webster’s defines Passion as a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement for something or about doing something.
An eight year old girl hesitantly strolls down a long, dim doorway-lined hallway carrying a plate of cookies. An oddly pungent flowery odor fills the air. Strange sounds and cries distract the girl as she tries to recall the words to the next song on the list. With each step she feels increasing drawn to the doorways that line her way. The curiosity is too much for the girl as she wanders through the next brightly lit doorway.
Her clouded, blue eyes looked sad. She is dressed in sweats and her slumped shoulders are covered in an old crocheted blanket. As she crosses the threshold of the doorway, at first she is startled and hesitates! Then, a small smile spreads across her face as the young girl enters the room.
This is where my Passion for serving the elderly and disabled began. I was eight years old on a trip to sing Christmas carols at the local nursing home. My heart was broken by all the loneliness that I felt that day in the halls of that nursing home. The more I visited, the more I grew to love my “little old people,” wanting to bring them all home because I was sure that I could make them happy and take care of them. From the perspective of an eight year old’s heart, this was completely doable!
I am passionate about what we do at PeopleCare Health Services. We give the elderly and disabled the opportunity to remain safely in their own homes surrounded by the memories they’ve built and the treasures they garnered. This is a priceless gift, especially when it is delivered with Passion.
How do we deliver this gift of dignity; of remaining in one’s cherished home and do so with Passion? The answer lies in finding a way to provide companionship while simultaneously doing those day-to-day tasks. It lies in finding a way to encourage clients to participate in the tasks when it would be easier to do it alone. It lies in validating their worth in listening to their stories and asking questions, even if it is the third time you’re hearing them. It lies in providing them care with a smile and a kind word.
It has been said that sometimes the manner in which a gift is given, is ultimate the gift itself. How much more true when it comes to working with the elderly and disabled. How you engage your tasks is perhaps the greater gift than the task themselves!
We can become so fixated on making sure the rules are followed and deadlines are met that we can lose sight of the “Passion” for what it is we are doing and, more importantly, why we are doing it. I encourage each and every one to think about what it is they are passionate about, and how that Passion can be experienced every day by those we meet and serve.
