Being Befriended
Included in the instructions given during the short orientation was that no one was to take a photo without the okay of the person whose photo was being taken. If an okay was given, the photo was not to be uploaded to facebook or to any other site. Those many, many warm memorable moments that the team experienced can only be shared today as memories versus through photos.
No one really knew what to expect when they got on the elevator to go to the third floor where many of the assisted living center residents had just finished eating their noon lunch. In moments it seemed, everyone on the team had found someone who seemed to be pleased that someone was interested in listening to his or to her story. There was a feeling among the team of being unconditionally accepted, affirmed and approved by those with whom they were just meeting for the first time.
The first hour or so together visiting led to a second hour that had been scheduled for the residents to do handicraft. The team helped the residents color and then put together what they had colored into a tepee. Then it was an hour of playing bingo with the residents. The following day the team returned to the assisted living center to find the residents happy to see familiar faces so quickly again. After helping during the scheduled cooking class with making fruit parfaits for the residents to eat, the team then passed out the parfaits which every single resident present very obviously enjoyed. By the end of the time that the team was at the assisted living center, there was a sense of one big family being together enjoying one another. The team’s last hour at the assisted living center was during the scheduled Bible study time. The time was used to sing songs that were familiar to the residents and to share scripture. Everyone left knowing that instead of them having befriended someone, that they had also been befriended.
some of the youth on the team enjoying time together doing a prayer walk in Alexandria
