Written by Eliza Brown
Note: This blog originally appeared on Mennonite Central Committee’s website. An excerpt follows. To read the full story, click here.
There is this rare moment – my favorite part of a rainstorm – when the rain is still falling steadily, but the sun begins to shine at the same time. It is a dissonant feeling: Doesn’t the sun know the rain hasn’t gone? How does it shine so unabashedly? It is so unexpected, so exquisite, how it glistens.
Walking alongside someone who is living with dementia can sometimes feel a bit like a rain cloud is overhead, making everything a bit dim, a bit more challenging, sometimes a bit sad. It often feels as if there is rain falling, and you don’t quite know how to carry on. Strangely enough, however, if you’ve ever seen our friend Iha Missa walking alongside someone with dementia, it somehow seems as if streams of sunlight have found a way to shine despite the rain.
When I was told that we’d be welcoming an IVEPer named Iha to join us for just shy of a year, I didn’t entirely know what that meant. I understood that she would be a volunteer coming from Indonesia to learn and experience how we do life here at Garden Spot Village’s memory support community, Meadow View. But there would have been no way for me to understand just how quickly Iha would become part of the Meadow View family, and how seamlessly she would accept us – quirks and all.
If I’m being honest, I can’t remember much about Iha’s first few days here, likely because of how she jumped in without hesitation. I remember meeting her, and then I remember her instantly taking our residents by the hand … and I don’t think she’s let go ever since! What stood out to me during those first few days and weeks was Iha’s ability to connect with residents in a way I hadn’t been able to during my time here. Their connection ran deeper than face value, for the residents had never met Iha; they possibly had never met anyone from Indonesia.
To read the full story, click here.