Vicious with the Elderly

Last night, I was at the Village Nursing Home with a group of like-minded New Yorkers who volunteer with NYCares. I give props to the organization and kudos to all the volunteers who devote precious man hours serving in soup kitchens, visiting the elderly, teaching children to do things, preparing ex-convicts for jobs, working with animals, and planting flowers.

I have been involved for a year or so now, but this September I've signed up for four unique events, the first of which was spending two hours on a Friday evening with the geriatric residents suffering from dementia who live on W. 12th on Hudson.

Once you get over the clinical surroundings and sterile smell mixed with bedpan refuse post Jell-O enjoyment, it hits you hard that these wheelchair bound people have few visitors. The lucky few who can form sentences are still fairly incoherent, the others just sit and stare off into space.

My visit was with Beatrice--a grey-haired fashionista toting a black and white purse featuring Heidi Klum--she had no idea who was on her bag. She wore clips in her wispy hair and bright green earrings. She approached me to help her re-affix one of these lovely green stones that had fallen off her right ear. I did so and for the rest of the evening she kept telling everyone who passed how much I had helped her. It made me wonder if anyone had been kind to her in recent days.

In addition to the elderly, the volunteers were a hodge-podge. I was particuarly moved by a young, unmarried Indian couple who'd moved to NJ 6 months ago from India. Their joint volunteerism touched me. It affected me more than being there with these people whose lives had wittled down to this.

It made me marvel at how far I had fallen in my romantic leanings when I had dreamed of a life with D'Souza--a man who scoffs at the notion of volunteerism and prefers to write a check or ten to any organization named after a Saint. But here, just before me were two FOBS in love, showing love for drooling old people in a smelly home in the West Village.