First Day

Today I started my new job at a nursing home. It was supposed to be my summer job, really, but they were so desperate for people that I agreed to pick up a few afternoons a week to help out. But I can already see that what I agreed to - four or six hours a week - is going to explode into something much bigger.

It was a hard first day. I misunderstood paperwork, didn't move fast enough, couldn't get myself organized, and asked questions. A lot of questions. The woman helping me out has an accent that's tough to understand so I kept getting confused, and by the end of our time together it was pretty clear that she thought I was rather dim. It was hard.

I met three patients, and they were the bright spot of the whole experience. One especially sweet man was a cancer patient who's slowly dying. I woke him up from a nap to test him, but after he got over his grogginess it was apparent that he was slightly confused, but happy for the attention. At the end of the test I gave him a drink of water and said, "There, how did that taste?"

"Pretty," he replied, "Just like you."

I smiled. "Well, I want to start giving you softer foods for the time being, and we can try some exercises to see if you get stronger and swallow better. How does that sound?"

"Good," he said softly.

"So you gonna let me come pester you some more?" I joked.

He grinned widely. "Please," he said.

I know better than to think that he's excited to be recieving speech therapy. I'm sure he just likes the attention. But it was nice to be appreciated a little bit.