Orphan Plates

I have a bunch of orphan plates I have always loved. Most people would have thrown them out, but for me, they are tiny everyday works of art and I treasure them.

I think some of the seniors are like those orphan plates, for they might be struggling to make it on their own, and many of the relatives might have "discarded them," or assigned them a lower priority in their lives as their care became more demanding.

I see each and every human being no matter how old they are or how infirm, as someone special who still has gifts to offer the world. There is a fiber artist whose art I have always loved, Deidre Scherer, who worked with hospice patients and other elders in their final year, months or days of their lives. She created the most beautiful, loving and compassionate fabric portraits of each of them. Although I cannot put them up here because of copyright issues, I will point you to her web site, http://www.dscherer.com/, where you can see her work. I hope you will appreciate the beauty and treasure these elders as I do.

There are 1.8 million seniors living in nursing homes today throughout the United States. The nursing home numbers do not include assisted-living facilities. There is currently no federal definition of assisted living, so there is a void in the data.

In 2008, there were some 1.45 million receiving hospice services. Of those, some 963,000 died, and 276,000 remained on the hospital census at the end of 2008 (these are known as carryovers). And still another 212,000 were released from hospice in 2008 (these are known as live releases) and for a variety of reasons.

And I often wonder about those who are left behind when a senior passes on. Sometimes a spouse is left or a grown child, and again, the relatives might feel uncomfortable continuing a loving and welcoming relationship with the survivor. And I think if the person or persons left behind have any physical/developmental challenges, the situation may be intensified.

Someone I know if facing such a situation right now, and some of you might also know people who are facing similar situations. I hope that each of us can get over that uncomfortable feeling and help the person to make that transition and find his or her way back to a productive and peaceful life. I know there are grief support groups and other forms of assistance, but the person or persons remaining might not always get connected up with them for whatever reasons, so it is important for us to reach out to them and help them find their way.