Residents@JV

Christmas 2006 Revisited with Ann

Tuesday evening, January 30, 2007, Ann Coy came out to Jacob’s Village for her last Tuesday of the month activity/visit in the women’s home. The residents had just finished eaten in both of their homes when Ann arrived parking her car near the carport. It was a cold and blustery night and Gloria, the women’s home coordinator, was helping her bring in all kinds of props for the evening’s activity. Mike, Michael, Scott, and home coordinator Joe entered the women’s home where Wanda and Debbie were awaiting the good times to start. Again on this visit, Donna Kay was missing because of continuing rehab to recover and improve on her leg injury. Always looking forward to a good time when Ann visits, the residents all gathered in the living room noticing all the props sitting on a table and bookshelf. The theme Ann wanted for her January activity was to ‘Revisit Christmas 2006’. Through the years since Ann and her husband Jim have been married, just under 50 years, she has collected many novelty Christmas music boxes and singing toys. From a variety of Santa Claus’s to a menagerie of Holiday animal creations, some 3’ tall, she has enough to play a different one everyday in the month of December. Before boxing them all up for another year, Ann wanted to show them off to the residents of Jacob’s Village. So she thought, let’s just have 365 day’s of Christmas this year, or at least ‘Revisit Christmas 2006’ before they’re put-away for the year. Everyone was singing and swinging along to the tunes of the dressed up toys as they were playing all the popular Christmas carols. Ann read specific scriptures that related different song items to verses in the Bible. For example, there was a verse in relation for each gift in the song ‘The twelve Day’s of Christmas’. She also had a handout for everyone that described ‘The 5 Finger Prayers’. Each finger on your hand represents a special prayer. Beginning with your thumb; being nearest to you, is for loved ones close to your heart. The next finger is the pointing finger, for anyone who is a teacher or mentor who points others in the right direction. The middle and tallest finger is for leaders who shape the World around us. The fourth finger, ring finger, the weakest finger of all is for those who are weak, ill, in trouble or pain. The little finger, smallest finger, should remind you to pray for yourself. By the time you have prayed for the other four groups, your own needs will be put in proper perspective. Appropriately, Ann had the old Santa Claus snack of milk & cookies for the treat. Ann told a story for an activity in which the residents could follow along by folding a piece of construction paper one fold at a time. - Once upon a time there was a man searching for happiness and the meaning of life. He thought by having a boat would answer his dilemma. It didn’t help, so he built a house. He found out that didn’t help either. Then, he got an airplane and again that didn’t help. He ran out of ideas; in disgust he undid everything he tried. What he was looking for was in front of him all along, a cross. The moral is, what you think your needs are, are usually just temporary fixes, follow and live by the cross.

posted by J V Resident Blog @ 11:35 AM