I'm Here to Break You Out of this Joint!

The first thing that I noticed was an ornate clock hanging on the wall. There was pleasant music playing in the background when one of the aides introduced herself and escorted me to Rose's room. This rehabilitation facility was clearly a notch above most of the others that I've visited and the staff seemed attentive and friendly.

I'm familiar with most of the care facilities in Lehigh and Northampton Counties, but this particular one was 2 hours away in a small town in Pennsylvania. I was pleased to discover that this one appeared to be a high quality facility because, sadly, I have been far too many substandard ones. As I walked to Rose's room I thought that she was pretty fortunate to be recuperating in such a nice place.

Rose transferred to the facility to be closer to her only son while she recovered from surgery. It was meant to be a short stay, perhaps a few weeks. But things don't always work out the way you plan and Rose had been there for almost 4 months.

Rose was a spritely woman in her 90s with thick glasses covering blue eyes. Her curly white hairy was brushed nicely and she was dressed in a blue sweat suit. She was barely 5' tall which just made her more endearing as she shook my hand. Rose spoke softly and was a bit hard to understand when she asked, "Are you here to decide if I can go home?"

"No. I'm here to break you out of this joint. Did you pack your clothes?", I replied. We had good laugh, and then we began to discuss the details of transitioning her back to her home in the Lehigh Valley.

That was my first meeting with Rose. We were able to transition her back to her home, and I enjoyed visiting with her there many times over the next year. How couldn't you enjoy being with Rose? The truth is that everyone loved her; her happiness was contagious. We were providing her with home care, but sometimes it seemed like her Caregivers and me were the ones being helped.

It was around Easter when Rose passed away at home, but, even to this day, the memory of her still makes me happy. I suppose she was more contagious than I thought.