Another Reason to Love Ice Cream

Today was one of the best days I've had at the nursing home and it's all because of one little lady named Margaret. During the two months I've worked there, this resident has become my absolute favorite. She is 97 years old but definitely acts like a sweet (and sometimes stubborn)  5 year old. I've learned that these residents are perfect examples of becoming like little children as Christ has asked us to do. Anyway, I'll share a few smaller experiences as I make my way to the story.

I got to work at 6 in the morning and started the usual tasks of passing medications and waking residents up. I helped another lady get up, shower and get dressed for church and carried casual conversation throughout the process. It's not a hard process, but it definitely takes time and effort. But when we were finished she said, "Thank you for all your help. You're such a doll. I wouldn't want anyone else to help me but you." That made me feel good :)

Then I went to check on another lady just to see how she was doing. She wanted to watch a show but didn't know how to work the TV. So I showed her how to use it and tried finding a channel she wanted. We flipped on to TLC and "Say Yes to the Dress" was on. Just trying to make conversation, I told her that I went wedding dress shopping last weekend. Well that made her so happy and excited! Seeing how excited she was I asked her if she wanted to look at some of the dresses I tried on. Her eyes lit up and she of course agreed to look at the pictures. So I sat down on the bed and looked at pictures with her. I know it made my day and I hope it made hers as well.

And then it was lunch time, which is my favorite time because I finally get a chance to sit down after 7 crazy hours of running around. After all the residents were served I grabbed a plate of food and sat next to Margaret. I asked, "Is it okay if I sit next to you?" She responded, "I would love that" and put her hand on my arm. Margaret hadn't eaten anything really, but as soon as she saw me eating she picked up her fork too. I scarfed my food down and teased her a little about not eating very much. Then the cook offered everyone some ice cream. I said, "Oh Margaret you have to have some ice cream. It looks so good!" But she quickly shot me down and said, "I can't have ice cream cause I don't want to get fat!" I immediately started laughing which made her laugh too. I kept trying to convince her but she would tell me that her mother said ice cream makes you fat so she couldn't have any. She really didn't want to get fat! Imagine that, a 97 year old who's worried about her weight. Is that how I'm going to be? Oh boy...

Anyway, I finally said, "Margaret. You're 97 years old and you're not fat. You can eat whatever you want!" I guess that convinced her enough because she took the chocolate ice cream, but still claiming that I was making her fat. However, it didn't end there. She took a bite but then put the spoon in front of my mouth for a bite! And how could I refuse that? I ate the ice cream while laughing and she was laughing and my coworker was laughing and the cook was laughing because nobody had ever seen her do something like that. And like a little kid who realizes this would get her attention, Margaret kept doing it. She would take a bite, then give me a bite followed by a kiss on the cheek, all the while laughing. It was such a fun lunch.

I told her I was full and she was going to make me fat (which of course made her laugh more) but she disagreed. The ice cream was finally finished and I resumed my tasks. But I know that Margaret and I will share a special bond from now on while she's at the facility. I hope she lives forever so we can share many more bowls of ice cream together. But when she finally does pass on, I'll make sure we get some ice cream in heaven right away. We'll have perfect bodies anyway so who's counting calories? :)