When I first heard of occupational therapy, and had my first thoughts that maybe it was a job I could do, I shadowed an OT at a nursing home in Middlebury to see what it was like. The only patient we saw that morning was 95 years old. She was laying in bed, and refused therapy as soon as the OT entered the room. Despite attempts both firm and kind, the patient shouted "I'M 95 YEARS OLD, I'VE WORKED TWO JOBS ALL MY LIFE, THIS IS MY CHANCE TO REST!!"
When I left the nursing home that day, I walked quickly away. I walked and walked, bought a green tea and kept walking. Drinking green leaves, walking over green grass, feeling wind and light, stopping only to watch the Otter Creek crash and churn over the rocks at Middlebury Falls. That hour in the nursing home pushed me fiercely into life.
No comments:
Post a Comment