Commun ty Matters Wichita Presbyterian Manor
December 2017
INSERT NEW PHOTO Betty Curtis
Have some fun By Greg Spring, chaplain Wichita Presbyterian Manor
In late October of this year one of our Westerly residents, Betty Curtis, took a trip to visit her sister in Denver. Betty’s two daughters also joined. This pair of sisters, as Betty put it, had a good trip, which included a day in the snow. I thought to myself, what in the world would Betty be doing in the snow? It turns out this group of sisters selected one day to drive up to the mountains. They were in the mountains for half of a day, then back to civilization. According to Betty, there was quite a bit of snow. They got out of the car to enjoy the snow and they started making snowballs. I asked, “Betty, did you hit anybody with a snowball?” She replied, “Of course, that’s the purpose of a snowball.” There are two lessons from this incident. First of all, fun things like a snowball keep us young. We might grow old, but let’s not grow up. The second lesson is obvious. If there is snow, stay away from Betty or there might be a snowball fight.
Christmas tree-ditions By Chaplain Greg Spring’s late father, Richard Spring
When I think of Christmas, I remember most of all, the scene around the Christmas tree when my three kids were small. You see my wife was into “arts and crafts” like ladies everywhere, so the house was filled with decorations. A spot was hardly bare. But over in one corner, with the TV moved away, we made room for a big fir tree, the center of Christmas day. The room had a very high ceiling, so the tree was nice and tall. It took some really good supports to make sure it didn’t fall. TREE, continued on page 2
TREE, continued from page 1
My job was to string the lights, which didn’t amount to much. Mom and the kids did all the rest, with ornaments, icicles and such. They gathered around that tree and hung decorations everywhere, and pretty soon you couldn’t see a square inch that looked bare. I sort of stayed out of the way and nursed my coffee mug and put up my little statue of a grouch with a sign, “Bah Humbug.” They really did a lot of work just to decorate a tree, a little twig with a star on top would have been enough for me. It seemed to me they spent their time on something that wouldn’t last, but we were building fam-
ily traditions with every year that passed. That tree became a gathering place at the end of every day where we would read the Christmas story and then take time to pray. There weren’t many presents that anyone could see on Christmas Eve. But after the kids were fast asleep, I’d put the rest beneath the tree. The next morning, early, following our plan and tradition, we opened the presents one by one according to family position. The youngest child was always first in our logical design and continued on by ascending age with Dad the last in line. Around the family Christmas tree are my memories of the past.
No matter how the world may change, the memories shall last. Mom was only forty-three, her last Christmas here below, And by early February she was with the Lord, we know. In the years since then, about fourteen, I’ve never had a tree. It didn’t seem to make much sense for just my dog and me. But when I visit my kids and see the decorations at their places, I notice the trees are quite large and ornaments fill the spaces. They carry on the family traditions they shared with Mom and me, And that’s why I always remember our family’s Christmas tree.
Community Matters
is published monthly for residents and friends of Wichita Presbyterian Manor by Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Learn more at PresbyterianManors.org. Brad Radatz, interim executive director Melody Dodge, marketing director To submit or suggest articles for this publication, contact Amy Watson, life enrichment director, awatson@pmma.org. Telephone: 316-942-7456 Fax: 316-941-3806 Address: 4700 W. 13th St., Wichita, KS 67212-5575 Our mission: We provide quality senior services guided by Christian values. WichitaPresbyterianManor.org
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Community Matters December 2017
My favorite holiday memories By Penny Knapic, RN, director of assisted living
Growing up, we always went to my Grandma’s either the weekend before or after Thanksgiving and Christmas so that all of her kids could come. She had a small house, and it was packed wall to wall, but it was so much fun to play with cousins. She always had so much homemade food including breads, poppy seed rolls, apple rolls and then the candies at Christmas and popcorn balls. Verinicka (Kraut perogie) was the best food ever at both holidays. We never got a store-bought Christmas gift – it was always homemade. I still have some of the ornaments that she made. After we got a little older, our gift was to pick a handmade ornament off the tree. So much fun! And then Uncle Earl and his movie camera with those blinding lights going around videoing everything. Like us on Facebook
6 steps to keep the peace this holiday season Our expectations of family members and a desire to have a heartwarming, joyful time with them seem to peak during holiday gatherings.Yet that’s precisely when relatives can be at their worst, replaying old grievances and interacting in incredibly unproductive ways. Try applying these six strategies: well rested and calm.Yet, we tend to stretch ourselves to our limits at 1. Bury the hatchet. Nothing will holiday time by going all out. chase the cheer and deepen chasms faster than engaging dysfunction. So, 4. Steal moments of relaxation. during the visit, do your utmost to Holidays are supposed to include give up trying to change anyone’s down time, so build breaks into your thoughts and actions. schedule before, during and after your gatherings. Book alone time 2. Hold your tongue. When it and leisurely walks and don’t skip comes to our grown kids, aging your established exercise or mediparents and in-laws, we tend to tation routines; they’re even more reflexively blurt things out without vital during high-stress, high-calorie a second thought. That can hurt periods. someone’s feelings. 5. Reinvent your traditions. 3. Simplify and reduce stress. How about staging a gathering in In order to be able to follow steps 1 a new place to set family festivities and 2, we need to be at our best — and dynamics on a fresh footing?
By selecting a locale that’s reasonably convenient for your crowd and taking advantage of special offerings there, you can diminish the fraught feeling of home and boost the fun quotient. 6. Revamp gift giving. Consider donating to a cause on behalf of your loved ones and suggesting that they do the same instead of giving one another material items.Another easy strategy that can make fewer demands on your time and cut back on household clutter is to purchase “experience” gifts online: theater, concert and movie tickets, special restaurant gift cards, spa treatments, adventure trips and the like.
Veterans Day Celebration
Our veterans were honored with a special parade walking with pride. The halls were lined with residents, family and staff showing their patriotic pride. Our guys and gal were treated to cake and punch where they shared old war stories. Wichita Presbyterian Manor
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Wichita Presbyterian Manor’s Post-Acute To Home (PATH®) program isn’t just about getting you home—it’s about getting you back to your life. Call 316-942-7456 today to schedule your personal appointment and tour. WichitaPresbyterianManor.org
Tell about your activities We will feature our activity professionals in an upcoming issue of Community Matters. If you know an activity professional with a story to tell, or if you want to share how participating in activities at your campus keeps your mind sharp and your body well, or if you just want to tell the world what you love about living in your senior living community, we want to share the story. Contact Amy Watson, life enrichment director, and your story could be featured in an upcoming edition of Community Matters.
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Community Matters December 2017
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