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Christadelphian Aged Care A U T U M N N E W S L E T T E R
MARANATHA Address: 1582 Anzac Avenue, Kallangur QLD 4503
Come, said the leaves to the wind one day, Come o’er the meadows and we will play. Put on your dresses
Scarlet and Gold For Summer is gone and the days grow cold. - George Eliot nnn
“God makes everything beautiful in its time” Ecclesiastes 3:11
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Phone: (07) 3482 5333
Email: admin@chomes.com.au
Manager’s Message
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Welcome to Maranatha Here in Queensland, as Autumn 2016 approaches, we breathe a collective sigh of relief for the end of the hot summer and a return to more friendly climatic conditions. At Maranatha, we are continuing to build and change along with the needs of our ageing population and we are excited to see the new 33 bed wing taking shape, on what was our front paddock. Excited?? Well… some would not use that particular adjective to describe their feelings when they contemplate the structure that grows daily. Some might say they are feeling disinterested, curious, ambivalent and even anxious or annoyed that we are constantly swept along by the relentless tide of change. It’s all a matter of perspective isn’t it? The facts are concrete (or in this case, steel and concrete) and indisputable but how we interpret the facts changes. While facts are often outside of our realm of influence we are completely in charge of their interpretation. Recently an aged friend of mine, Bill, told me that he had become bored with his life and had decided to go job hunting. Although in his mid eighties, he duly wrote an application letter in response to a locally advertised position and awaited the reply. He received the normal courteous acknowledgement of his application but was not selected for interview. Bill confided that he was not greatly surprised or disappointed by this and observed that the opening sentence of his cover letter ‘I began my working career in 1946…’ may have been the problem. The point is that my friend has a wonderfully positive attitude and lives a life where each new day brings challenge and adventure. The facts cannot be altered; he is 85 years old, has suffered a stroke, totters rather than walks and is unlikely to be employed but he is not in any way defeated by these facts. It’s all about attitude. I find that attitude is something that is so changeable, it not only changes day by day but minute by minute! With the right attitude the Everest of problems we encounter before morning tea can be reduced to a mere mound by lunch time.
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Manager’s Message continued This is not something that often happens naturally, most of us have a propensity to see the negative but we can train ourselves to refocus to a positive viewpoint. My friend Bill is a master of this art. In his life he has weathered many storms but he has refused to dwell on those difficulties. He sees his mind as a space for rent and as landlord of that space his is particular in his choice of tenant. He evicts the callous, hurtful, mean and miserable and replaces them with the warm, loving, compassion and kind. The result is a life which has inherent happiness no matter the circumstances. Around AD 60, Paul the Apostle was imprisoned in Rome and awaiting execution. At this time, he wrote to the church at Philippi informing them of his circumstances but also encouraging them to follow his example. He sums up his attitude in the last chapter when he gives this advice: “Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honourable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” Following Paul’s advice takes practice and discipline but we all have the potential to little by little populate our minds with the positive and by doing so we will reap great rewards. Regards, Kathy Hallmark
MARCH
APRIL
MAY
1 Arthur Wright
5 Robert Lee
2 Bev Corver
3 Annie Murray
9 Alan Jarman
3 Gerti Dodd
5 Peggy Ecuyer
10 Merle Finch
3 Bruce Peacock
5 Mary Harrison
16 Gerald Pittaway
11 Margot Szczepaniak
7 Wal Joseph
17 Claire Peacock
11 Dulice Brandon
10 Wendy Pogson
18 Christina Rucker 13 Marjorie Green
26 Dorothy Barton 19 Graham Worsnop 14 Annie Teske 28 Jean Burrell
19 Margaret Ingram 15 Valda Jarman
28 Phyllis Watson
23 John Davies
16 Jean Tweedale
28 Gwen Drew
23 Robert Crew
16 Phyllis James
24 Daphne Fairon 17 Betty Collins 28 Dawn Shaw
22 Alisa Bott
28 Joy Gregory
23 Lorna Clark
30 Daphne Steele
23 Peter Dawson 24 Betty Hermann 25 Jane Bundesen
UPCOMING EVENTS MARCH 2nd - Residents & Family Meeting 11th - Market Day (Bring your money) 17th - St Patrick’s Day 21st - World Poetry day 24th - March Birthday Party & Concert “Tim & Maggie” 29th - Easter Morning Tea
APRIL
8th - Sing-a-long with Dawn and Friends 25th - Anzac Day 21st - World Poetry day 29th - April Birthday Party & Concert “Rob & Rhonda”
MAY
6th - Sing-a-long with Dawn and Friends 9th - Mother’s Day Morning Tea & Concert “Ken Cougan" 20th - Concert “Rhythm for You” 27th - May Birthday Party & Concert “Joh Sophos” 30th - Michelle K Fashion
Activity Reviews ACTIVITY ASSISTANTS Every year, Christadelphian Aged Care offers Christadelphian youth the opportunity to work as Activity Assistants over the Christmas period. This year, the residents of Maranatha were blessed in having 4 interns - Michael, James, Sara and Daniel. Over the weeks they were with us, additional walks were taken, gardening was enjoyed, one on one increased, pianos were played,
singing, knitting and much, much more.
THANKS TO FOLLOWMONT Every month, volunteer Sonia brings us boxes of gifts on behalf of Followmont. Colouring books to keep our fingers nimble and our minds at peace, puzzle books to help us stay sharp and busy, magazines so we are up to date with all the gossip and other reading material – just for the joy of reading. We would like to express our thanks for these gifts not only because of the joy that they brings, but also because these gifts mean that we are remembered and not forgotten by the community.
COOKING WITH COLLEEN This year has seen a new activity added to the monthly program “Cooking with Colleen”. Together, the residents enjoy the memories that only true cooks know - tastes, smells, textures and of course the eating of your own produce. To date, they have travelled to their mothers and their own kitchen memories with the making and eating of scones as well as the orient with fried rice. Next month they plan on travelling (by taste) to Wales – and who knows where they will go from there, the world’s the limit.
Activity Reviews continued CHRISTADELPHIAN CHILDREN’S (AND YOUNG ADULTS) CONCERT Every year, thanks to the tireless effort of Judy Collins, the youth of Brisbane come to Maranatha bringing with them their smiles, musical talents and love of God. What follows is a magical morning of intergenerational mingling around these shared loves.
Maranatha Market Day Every 3 months, held in the Activity Room. This is a time where residents can enjoy purchasing items of their own choosing craft, cards, lollies, small gifts for family or friends and other enjoyable items or just ‘window’ shop. All welcome (and don’t forget your cash). Run in March, June, September and December.
Family Carers Support Group 2nd Friday each month Family and friends of residents with Dementia are welcome to join our group. The group is designed to give recognition to the devotion, courage, compassion and stresses that family carers experience and to offer education and support to better equip them to continue with their role so that together with the professional carers, they can continue to support their loved one.
The Maranatha Choir has resumed again for 2016. Lyne:e has kindly offered to be the choir mistress and Glenys is on the piano. Every Monday at 10:30am (except 2nd Monday of the month) In the Ac6vity Room Come along and join us ☺
Resident Story - Naomi Clark I was born in Melbourne, Victoria in 1933. My father was from Sydney and my mother from Melbourne. When my parents married they lived in Sydney for 12 months - this is where their first child, a daughter was born. They then moved to Melbourne and 14 months after my sister was born they had me. They went on to have 2 more children, both boys. We were all given bible names; Esther, Naomi, David and John. My parents were Christadelphian and we were brought up in the Christadelphian faith. My dad was out of work during the depression and was eventually offered a clerks job in Benalla, in the North East of Victoria which he took and we spent all our childhood years there. We travelled down to Melbourne from time to time to visit family. We used to travel by train until dad bought a car and then we travelled down by car. Once we grew up and left school, my sister and I obtained employment as machinist in a clothing factory. My brother became sick and contracted Polio, which was rampart ant the time, and sadly he died before his 13th birthday. His death was unexpected and it hit dad and mum very hard. We moved over to Tasmania where dad and mum had friendships with Christadelphian families there. One family which dad and mum were particularly friendly with, had 3 children around our ages. We had only been in Tasmania about one month when dad became ill and was hospitalised. He had contacted hepatitis and sadly he didn’t make it. Mum was a seamstress she took sewing jobs which brought in some cash, but all 3 of us kids were working, with David having a job in a foundry, so we managed. My sister Esther became romantically involved with David Case. They both became baptised and eventually became engaged and married. They still live in Tasmania and have 3 children – all of whom are married. I went across to Melbourne on a working holiday. After a year, I went back home to Launceston but I couldn’t settle, so I went back to Melbourne. I attended a couple of camps at seaside locations. There was one camp at Byron Bay that I attended and that is where I met my husband. There was a bit of travelling backwards and forwards to see each other. I then went to Brisbane (his home state) to work and to get to know each other better. We became engaged and married in 1959. We raised 3 sons, the eldest is married and lives in Christchurch NZ. The second son lives in London but has not married (as yet). Our third son lives here in Brisbane and has twins. Their mother has gone back to work 2 days a week. The twin’s father works from home and on one of the 2 days, he comes and picks me up to help look after them while he works – this ended this year, as they are now going to school. I have lived at Maranatha for over 15 years now. I moved in after my husband died on his 65th Birthday from a stroke and heart attack. There is an aged gap between my eldest son’s children and my youngest son’s children, so I am a great grandmother to my grandchildren in New Zealand and only a grandmother to my grandchildren in Brisbane.
Azalea Christmas Party
International Year of Pulses 2016 The 68th UN General Assembly declared 2016 to be the International Year of Pulses (IYP). IYP 2016 aims to raise public awareness of the nutritional benefits of pulses as part of sustainable food production aimed towards food security and nutrition. Pulses are an annual plant that is part of the legume family. They yield one to twelve grains or seeds of variable size, shape and colour within a pod, and are used for food for people and feed for animals. The term “pulses� is limited to crops which are mainly harvested solely for dry grain. The term excludes vegetable crops harvested green for food, crops used mainly for oil extraction, and leguminous crops that are used exclusively for sowing purposes. Pulse crops such as lentils, beans, peas and chickpeas are a critical part of the general food basket. Pulses are a vital source of plant-based proteins and amino acids for people around the globe. They should be eaten as part of a healthy diet to address obesity, as well as to prevent and help manage chronic diseases such as diabetes, coronary conditions and cancer. Pulses are also an i m p o r t a n t s o u rc e o f plant-based protein for animals. The pulse plant itself has nitrogen-fixing properties which can contribute to increasing soil fertility and have a positive impact on the environment. The United National website at http://www.fao.org/ pulses-2016/en/ is to be the main platform to share information and relevant resources about pulses, including recipes from various countries around the globe.
Volunteer Corner
Once a year, the residents of Maranatha gather together to say “thank you” to the volunteers that assist throughout the year. I cannot express our thanks any better than our resident Bob, whose duty it was to give the speech this year. Our beautiful Nancy followed up these thoughts when she penned the words to her own version of “You are My Sunshine”, sung on the day in beautiful unison with Joan and Colleen. You’re all our sunshine’s, Our ray of sunshine, You make us happy, With all your help, You’ll never know dears, How much we love you, & we thank you for all of your work. The other night, dears I was just thinking How much you help us with your care We would be lost, dears Without your efforts & we love to have you all near You’re all our sunshine’s Our rays of sunshine You make us happy With all your care You’ll never know dears How much we love you & we thank you for all being here
We’ll always treasure & work beside you, If you will always stay the same Your caring natures, Not taken for granted As I’m sure all our residents would say You’re all our volunteers, Our lovely volunteers You bring a smile To all you see Please take our songs as apprec…iation As this is what you all mean to me We thank you all for all that you beeeeeeeeeeeee.
“What you do makes a difference. You have to decide what difference you want to make.” If you are interested in joining the Volunteer program, please do not hesitate to contact us.
love
1 John 3:18
Pastoral Care
Let us not with word or speech but with actions and in truth
AN EXTRA DOSE OF PATIENCE
Have you ever noticed the number of times we need to wait… and it’s the little things that require this. Like going to the doctor. If my appointment says 10am, I’m fairly certain I won’t be walking through his door at 10, usually it will be 10.15 or later. Or you wait for that tradesman who said he’d come at 2.00. For some, it’s no big issue. For me, it’s quite a challenge, as I get impatient. I am bound by times, which can often be frustrating. There is a lot of waiting in life. What about when a woman is to give birth to her baby. No-one can tell the exact minute her child will be delivered. As children we wait to start school, and the little boy or girl looks forward to that first day of adventure. In fact, when you think about it for a moment, life is full of waiting. We wait to find our first job. We stop at the traffic lights, annoying when we’re in a hurry. We wait in line at the supermarket. And, if we’re honest, we dislike it. Patience is needed in life, but few virtues are harder to come by than patience. It’s a real struggle . Two of the great laws of life we must eventually learn are: 1) Many circumstances we have in life are uncontrollable 2) Things don’t always go as planned: – Life just doesn’t always go the way we want – Many things in life are beyond our control Especially 3 times in our life we need an extra dose of patience. Let’s take a look at them… 1. When circumstances are uncontrollable. We like to be in control of everything that happens - relationships, work, circumstances. But that’s not really what happens. “People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are.” – George Bernard Shaw What we need to remember is that my circumstances do not define me. When circumstances are uncontrollable, we often lose our peace. Much of life is beyond your control. You sit in gridlock traffic for hours and miss an important event. A couple keeps trying desperately for a baby, and it just isn’t happening. When these things - big or small - happen, we get frustrated and lose our peace of mind. Did you know God has promised peace of mind, because it’s a fundamental need of your life. One of the Hebrew names of God is Jehovah Shalom. “Shalom” means peace. “Jehovah Shalom” means “I am the God of peace.” If God says, “I’m offering you a gift of peace,” he means it. It’s not something you work for. It’s not something you deserve. It’s not something you try for. You don’t beg for peace. You don’t plead for peace. Isaiah 26:3-4 says “The Lord gives perfect peace to those whose faith is firm. So always trust the Lord because He is forever our mighty rock”. But here’s what Jesus says to us: “I am leaving you with a gift - peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” (John 14:27 NLT) 2. When people are unchangeable, we tend to lose our peace. People naturally resist change. And they resent it when we try to change them. The quickest way to lose our peace of mind is to try to change somebody else, because most people are just not going to change. We can’t change people – we can try to influence them. But that’s about all… 3. When problems are unexplainable, it’s easy to lose our peace. We know that life is not fair. But who told us it would be ? A lot about life doesn’t make sense. Not everybody has a happy ending. Things don’t always turn out right. That’s when we need a special dose of patience. 4. What makes it more difficult is that we are not always going to know why. And when we don’t know why, we tend to get anxious, nervous, and stressed, and we lose our peace. God has promised peace of mind, because it’s a fundamental need of your life. One of the Hebrew names of God is Jehovah Shalom. “Shalom” means peace. “Jehovah Shalom” means “I am the God of peace.” If God says, “I’m offering you a gift of peace,” he means it. It’s not something you work for. It’s not something you deserve. It’s not something you try for. You don’t beg for peace. You don’t plead for peace. Peace has nothing to do with problem-free living. It is simply a gift that you must accept, and it’s available to you today. - By Chris Witts
Bereavements
Our deepest sympathies have gone out to the families who have lost their loved ones over the Summer period.
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Read, Rest & Relax! I'm the life of the party - even if it lasts until 8 pm. I'm very good at opening childproof caps - with a hammer. I'm usually interested in going home before I get to where I am going. I'm smiling all the time because I can't hear a thing you're saying. I'm very good at telling stories; over and over and over and over….. I'm not really grouchy, I just don't like traffic, waiting, crowds, lawyers, loud music, unruly kids, barking dogs, politicians and a few other things I can't seem to remember right now. 7. I'm wrinkled, saggy, lumpy, and that's just my left leg. 8. I'm sure they are making adults much younger these days, and when did they let kids become policemen? And, how can my kids be older than I feel sometimes? 9. I'm wondering, if you're only as old as you feel, how could I be alive at 150? 10. I'm a walking storeroom of facts - I've just lost the key to the storeroom door. Yes, I'm a SENIOR CITIZEN and I think I am having the time of my life. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Anzac Slice
• 1 cup plain flour
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats • 2/3 cup raw caster sugar • 2/3 cup desiccated coconut • 125g butter, chopped • 2 tablespoons golden syrup • 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda Makes 15 Pieces HISTORY: Anzac biscuits were developed for soldiers in World War I. Oats were chosen because of their high nutritional value and other ingredients for long shelflife properties. For crunchier biscuits allow to cool on the tray. For chewier ones remove from tray and place on a wire rack to cool. You can store biscuits in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
1. Preheat oven to 180°C/ 160°C fan-forced. Grease an 18cm x 28cm (base) slice pan. Line with baking paper, extending paper 2cm from edge of pan.
2. Combine flour, oats, sugar and coconut in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre. Place butter, syrup and 2 tablespoons cold water in a saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 to 5 minutes or until butter has melted. Remove from heat. Stir in bicarbonate of soda. Stir butter mixture into oat mixture.
3. Transfer mixture to prepared pan. Using the back of a spoon, press mixture evenly into pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden. Cool completely in pan. Cut into pieces. Serve.
CROSSWORD He is not here. He has risen! Words taken from John 20:1-18 (NIV)
Disclaimer: All photos and stories have been published with consent of relatives and residents involved. Thank you for your submissions.