GOING DEEPER

Over three months, I have come to know my fellow residents. Or not.

This week, I have seen different aspects to our "characters."

Our mutterer, who repeats "I want my mother, I want my mother. Where is my sister? Where is my sister?" endlessly, had visitors this week. I watched and wondered how much she understood.

Since then, her sentences have changed. "They're going to be married. I'm going." She understood and is clearly looking forward to the event.

Another lady is usually quiet--until she erupts in profanity. She was fussing at the mutterer earlier this week.

Our greeter always talks about himself. Pleasant, sweet. . .nonstop, like listening to water drip in a sink.  Until he heard the one lady speaking profanity to the mutterer. He spoke up several times, "Be gentle with Grandma!" I was so proud of him.

Our songbird adores children. When they came through on Halloween night, she hugged the babies tight, gave them handfuls of candy and announced "God told me too!" (in defiance of directions to give each child one piece. How can the activity director argue with God?)  She ate half-a-dozen packages of Skittles and sang happily for the rest of the night.

Everyone protects their things for the wanderer because she tends to pick up things that are unattached (she keeps a stash of toilet paper in her room and walks off with pens and food and almost anything.). But as I've watched her, I see a little girl. She loves anything shiny and pretty and sweet. She wants to touch and taste (and keep, if she can get away with it).

The storyteller almost always has sad stories--she's had a difficult life. She repeats the same, sad, lengthy stories and we get tired of listening. This past week, I asked, "Do you like hugs? You look like you need a hug." She came over and grabbed ahold of me as if she never wanted to let go.

And then she told me a happy story.

Everyone here is good and bad, difficultand understandable, unpleasant and yet loveable. I pray that God will continue to open my eyes and ears.

**********NEWS**********

Lone Star Trail is available for free on Kindle today!

I expanded an earlier blog, A Tale of Three Fridays, and it's posted at http://mtlmagazine.com/article/a-tale-of-three-fridays/.  My articles right after one by Steven Curtis Chapman. I feel like I've arrived!

**We were one comment short of a book giveaway last week (my entries don't count). Once again a free book is up for grabs for every five entries.**