A Very Homewood Thanksgiving

Earlier this year, my mother-in-law, Lois, who is in her 80s, decided to make the move into assisted living. She wanted a place where medical assistance would be available within minutes, but where she could maintain her own independence and live in a place of her own.

In springtime, at her request, I conducted research. I polled local friends. I looked things up online. I came up with maybe 8 to 10 different places that people I trust recommended for assisted living for seniors in central PA. In May, we went and looked at a place called Homewood in Martinsburg. Lois decided that's where she wanted to go and live.

So in the summer, she finalized the business details related to the move and had surgery on her left knee. In the fall, she packed up and got rid of a bunch of things (giving some of them to US, and we hauled them home in several trips in my husband's Impala). And in very late October, she made the big move.

We didn't hear from her by phone until almost a week later. By then, the update was this: the moving van had come and gone, she'd sold the house she had lived in with my husband's dad in the Johnstown area, and she had already had a fall in her new place (hitting both her head and the knee she'd had surgery on) - and medical assistance had arrived within minutes.

She apparently has no lasting injuries from her fall, but she has issues with her balance now. She clings to the walls when she walks. She has a cane but it's not enough; what she needs is a walker. The walker she has is too big to move in and out of the car and she seems reluctant to use it. I must speak with her about this, as her safety is critical.

We used to go to her place in Carrolltown for Thanksgiving. When my husband's dad was alive, he cooked an amazing traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner with all the fixings. Some years since his passing, we have made and shared a dinner of chicken or turkey with her, and I would bring an apple pie for dessert. This year, she invited us to her new home for Thanksgiving; better yet, none of us would need to cook or wash dishes. So off to Homewood we went!

She had given us her new address, and we found her with little difficulty. The trip to Homewood is about an hour for us. Round trip of maybe 120 or 130 miles. The weather was clear, thank goodness, so we were able to make the trip without any danger or fuss.

We found her pretty much completely moved in and mostly unpacked. She needs to have pictures hung on the walls, and the maintenance men will do that for her soon, one-time, for free. There is a living room, a sun room, a kitchen with dining area, a main bathroom, a master bedroom with walk-in closet and private bath, and a spare bedroom she is using as a study. There is a tiny patio area outside and also a garage for her car.

She'd made reservations in advance for us to enjoy our Thanksgiving feast over lunchtime at the Terrace Cafe, a little dining area that serves meals to residents for reasonable prices. They can typically be served in person, ordered for takeout, or delivered. A meal list is provided to residents each week in advance.

So we had a nice lunch together, and gave thanks, and then came back to her place, and helped her out with a few things. There was a strip of carpet she wanted taped down in the garage, and I handled that. My husband connected her DVD/VCR player but we'll need the manual (still in a box somewhere) to finish set-up on that next time.

There is a full-size washer and dryer in her cottage, and they're very convenient. The microwave over the stove, however, is too high for her to reach and too complicated for her to program. She blew up a cappuccino or something in it right out of the gate and is now sort of afraid of it. My husband and I have several extra microwaves, and will take her down a few to choose from next time we visit; there's room on a counter top where it'll be more convenient and well within her reach.

Lois was accustomed to getting her gas at a full-service station, where they pumped it for her. So she does not know how to pump her own gas. Fortunately, the local Exxon station was open on Thanksgiving day, so my husband took her - in her Malibu - to the Exxon, and they figured out how to open the gas tank door (via a secret button!) and Lois pumped her own gas for the first time in her life, as my husband oversaw the operation.

While they were out getting gas in her car, I went out for a walk all around the grounds at Homewood. There is a tiny walking path that ends in the middle of a big parking lot (hey, at least they tried). There are different buildings that provide graduated levels of medical care for residents. There is a chapel on the grounds. There is a very nice library, in which I had a very Belle moment!

And with Christmas coming, there are decorations all around, and big words written on the landscape. Hefty, important words, like Peace. And Joy and Love and Faith. (By the way, I think we should write such words on our hearts EVERY single day of the year!) And as we all know, the greatest of these is LOVE.

As I walked the little path, I came across this tree with a bird nest in it and some really gorgeous red berries. I thought about the bird that used this nest in springtime, and how sorry I was that they weren't there now to see how beautiful it has become in late November (and probably those berries are edible and delicious, so there's your takeout, without even leaving your home!).

T. Tiger insisted on going along to wish Lois a happy Thanksgiving and a happy house warming. I have never posted a photo of Lois on Blip because she doesn't usually allow me to take her picture. I know she'd be embarrassed to hear she was the main photo, so I put her and T. Tiger in the extras, where you may see them grinning together like a pair of good friends! Okay now, you can hand me back that Tiger!  ;-)

We stayed until the Waltons Thanksgiving special came on, which she wanted to watch, and then my husband and I bowed out and headed for our own home. And that concludes our story of our very Homewood Thanksgiving.

I'll stop here for a second just to wish you all a happy Thanksgiving, whenever and however you celebrate it. I hope you have lots of everything you could wish for: good food and drink, good health, a safe and warm place to live, people who love you. May good words - like love, and joy, and peace, and hope - be written on your heart. May you have lots to be thankful for!

Here's a song for our day: Mark Knopfler, with the instrumental tune Going Home.