Posted by: Skatha on: 1 February 2010
Well, another Friday has passed and, once again, I spent two hours at the hospital playing with the kids. At least this time, when I offered to fill in for someone playing Wii, I wasn’t ridiculed. *whipes forehead in relief* There were a total of four boys who came in. All had monitors/IVs that had to be plugged in. Two had to wear masks. All of them were sweet as could be, except for one little boy who, while polite, had a hint of ADD. Every few minutes he was ready to move on to another Wii game despite what the others wanted.
Another girl was also there training for the morning shift on Fridays so there were the three of us who “work” for the hospital and then parents coming in and out.
All in all, though, a good day.
Posted by: Skatha on: 28 January 2010
A comment on my original post about volunteering at the local Children’s Hospital has prompted me to type an update.
After the first week of moderate success, I returned the following Sunday and again spent time with an infant in one of the ICU units, though this time I was able to rock which made it much more pleasant. She was awake most of the time and kept watching me with these enormous blue eyes. I talked to her in a soft child-like voice for most of the time, until she got cranky and it was time to eat. Once I left there, I wandered around searching for more patients to visit, but there were none so I left early.
Posted by: Skatha on: 4 January 2010
Yesterday was my first day of volunteering at the local Children’s Hospital. I decided to volunteer back in November, but orientation and training plus the holidays meant I didn’t officially begin until 3 January. I was inspired to volunteer after reading a story on the Today show’s website about a little boy with a disease that causes muscle to turn to bone. I decided then that I wanted a life changing experience. I know some children I encounter will be deathly ill and some not so horribly ill. I hope that in some small way I can touch their lives and, in turn, be touched by them.
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Posted by: Skatha on: 3 December 2009
I am ashamed to admit that I didn’t realise til I logged in to write this inspired blog entry that it’s been well over a month since I’ve posted anything here. I think with the coming year I will be revamping this blog and hopefully make it more entertaining. But for now, you’ll just have to accept this post inspired by a conversation with a dear friend…
There has been a discussion/arguement on a forum we’re both members of revolving around whether or not a child should know the truth about Santa Claus. I personally believe that a child should not know until at least age 10 or 11. Christmas fundamentally changes once the cat is out of the bag. The magic and wonder that exists before you know is replaced by the mentality that Christmas is a time for getting new toys. There is no magic in getting new toys.
As the conversation progressed, I looked back on my own life and can see the changes in attitude about Christmas within myself.
Once I was beyond the stage of receiving toys, Christmas mattered even less. Couple that with a mother who was determined to make Christmas miserable for everyone because she was miserable, and I came to really loathe December. I have to say that retailers don’t make it any more enjoyable pumping the same old tired Christmas songs into our ears when everyone sets out on Black Friday to shop. By the time Christmas does come around, I’m ready to scream if I have to listen to one more song the day before Christmas.
For one, brief, shining moment a few years ago, I returned to that magical time of Christmas when I was in a relationship with someone who loved everything about Christmas and I saw again what was missing from my life. Sadly, though, once the relationship ended my feelings about Christmas returned to what they’d been before.
Now I am on a personal journey to recapture the magic of Christmas in my own life. As a child, the magic comes from believing in the unbelievable. Perhaps as an adult, the magic is in the actions we take. In the giving of unexpected gifts.
Posted by: Skatha on: 14 October 2009
I’ve sat on this topic for a few weeks now and after reading an article on Yahoo just now, I figure now is as good a time as any to write this.
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