Singing for the Seniors

My oldest daughter is actively involved with her Girl Scout Troop and I just really love to see all of the activities that they do. Last week the group when to a local nursing home to sing Christmas Carols to the residents. Emily was very excited about this and had been studying her songbook the week prior to the event.

When we got there the troop leader had the girls sing Jingle Bells as they walked down the hall into the dining room area. The parents walked in the line as well behind the girls. I had no idea of the impact that walking down the hall behind these girls would have on me. As I walked down the hall I would peek into the rooms to watch the faces of the residents as their eyes followed the singing girls. The exhausted faces looked as if this was the highlight of their day. I began to tear up because I felt such sadness for these elderly people. Some were able to stand in the doorways to listen while others were hooked up to medical equipment in their beds.

Maybe this was just a realization that not all of us snuggle up in warm beds with our loved ones each night. Not everyone gets to sit by the fire and drink hot cocoa with silly Santa hats on ...

I am sure that some of these residents have families that visit and I am sure that some of them don't. I know one thing, the looks on their faces as they listened to the Christmas Carols showed that they felt a glimmer of holiday spirit that night.

The girls sung a few carols in the dining hall and passed out candy canes to the residents. One woman that Emily walked up to was silently crying and it just made my heart melt. Always be thankful for what you have and never dwell on what you don't.

Happy Holidays.