Leave the gun take the cannoli (9)

Cheering up the elderly can be challenging.  Usually, the first five minutes of our monthly Sunday breakfast at Methodist Hospital are devoted to scanning the room to find one or two patients that need some quality time.    Making initial contact  with  the patients can be tricky, as the elderly are often fearful of strangers.  So many seniors are aware of their failing memories that sight of a friendly, but unfamiliar, face can be confusing.

 One of the regular volunteers, Anthony Best, possesses a rare talent for coaxing even the shyest senior out of her shell. His contagious smile  and active listening skills make him the Merv Griffin of volunteers, as he brings out the best in everyone.

Last Sunday, I noticed a woman in the corner sobbing uncontrollably.  The people sitting it a  table on my left clearly      wanted to be left alone.   As my fellow volunteers dispersed around the room,  I sat next to the crying woman.  She didn’t seem to notice.   I said “Good Morning.”  She didn’t even look up.   I checked her name tag and tried again.  

“Senora, parle italiano?”

“No!  Not good.  I was born there but I speak English,” she insisted through  a thick  Neapolitan accent.   I made her a cup of tea and she told me her life story.      

When the nurse came to check her blood pressure I excused my self and  took a  left turn.   I stopped at  the table where   a frustrated volunteer was  engaged in  a staring contest with the patients.  Anthony  was also headed for this table.   I tried to get a conversation going but the most I could get out of anyone was that one woman likes to play the piano. Instantly,  Anthony cleared a path to a piano in the back of the room that none of us had noticed before.  

The minute the woman sat down her face lit up.  She played a mixture of gospel and show tunes for the rest of the morning.

I returned to my Italian friend.  She wanted me to go ask the nurse for something.   I didn’t want to leave her alone for fear she would start crying again, so I called over Anthony.

I was only gone for two minutes but when I returned Anthony had her laughing and reminiscing about her favorite Brooklyn apartment. 

Anthony always has the right  questions to keep the conversation  moving.  Whether he’s listening to a former seamstress explain the subtleties of her favorite fabrics or discussing an  old movie,  Anthony makes these women feel as if they  are the only person in the room.                 

Its amazing how a little male attention can help a lady perk up, even at an advanced age.                    

This entry was posted on Sunday, October 21st, 2007 at 12:01 pm and is filed under the disenfranchised. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.