Plant Care “Between Times”

Picture it: houseplant-experienced resident elderly ladies and gentlemen. A woman has had a houseful of plants that she has cared for all her life. Some plants are as old as she is, or older. She knows how to keep them going. Or perhaps it is the gentlemen of the house who has the green thumb. Now, here they are with the limited space of their campus apartment. Not all the plants were able to come with them to their new home. Some were passed to the daughter or daughter-in-law.

Now a plant has been placed in a common area.

Residents from Hall A water it. Then a resident from Hall B recalls that it was dry when she checked it—yesterday—and thinks, I must water it when I come by tomorrow. No surprisingly, it becomes overwatered. So Cathy G makes a sign.

Who owns the plant? Is it a resident? Is it housekeeping? Who is supposed to water it? How does a person know when it is “between times”? ’Twas amusing to picture the plant-watering activities that called for the making of a sign.

Jigsaw Puzzle Putaway Rule

Greencroft is the retirement complex in Goshen, Indiana, where my parents chose to live after retirement. Our family traveled from Florida to see them (and other Indiana relatives) every summer for many years. Mother made her transition to heaven in 1996, and Daddy continued to reside at Greencroft for fourteen more years. Greencroft rented guest rooms at a reasonable cost. One guest room was right off a common area, where many residents spent some time each evening. A piano and organ, used for the Sunday meeting held in the common area, were available for residents to play. I sometimes sat down at the piano to play a few songs. A resident once caught me and asked me to play the piano while she played the organ. Using hymnbooks, we played together for about thirty minutes.

Daddy loved to work crossword puzzles and did at least one every day. He also enjoyed jigsaw puzzles. A puzzle was always under way in the common area. Residents had it worked out. Cookie sheets held sorted pieces. Participants never knew how much work would be accomplished by the time they came back to the table. We worked at the puzzle table most evenings when we were there. Other residents came to the area to play games, most often Rummikub. My small children, who had learned the game from their paternal grandmother, often participated in the game with these elderly folks.

The campus had several residential wings, as well as a health and rehabilitation center. After my mother died, Daddy expanded his lifelong commitment to serving others by volunteering to feed a younger resident, a gentleman who had been in an accident and was unable to feed himself. The gentleman eventually became a Christ-follower, much to Daddy’s delight. Daddy walked across campus to feed him for two meals a day. Sometimes our visit included a walk through or past another wing or another common area on campus.

In one such area we found an amusing sign about putting the puzzles away.

So it’s: Okay, to the closet! No, to the chair. Closet? Chair? Closet? Chair?

Creation Poem from Home Schooling

Way back in the summer of 2009 I was beginning to play around with social networking, probably before it had taken that name “social networking.”

I used My Space. And I like the Notes, as a place to store memories. I stored this one on August 8, 2009. It is from the Rod & Staff curriculum, which I used for home schooling.

The First Week

Day one brought heaven, earth, and light.
It must have been so very bright.

Day two God make the clear blue sky,
A place for many birds to fly.

Day three brought land apart from seas
With all the plants and grass and trees.

Day four shone forth moon, stars, and sun.
The work of God was not yet done.

Day five we see the fish and birds.
God did all this with just His words.

Day six God formed all beasts and man
To finish His creation plan.

Day seven was especially blessed,
A day for worship and for rest.