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Friday, August 19, 2016

An Ordinary Day


Having been asked to describe an ordinary day at Oakwood, I asked myself if I ever have an "ordinary" day? Do any of us? However, I will try to describe what I do each day and mention some of the options. Since I have a room in Westwood which is across the patio from the main part of the house, the eight or nine of us who are living here gather for breakfast around a large, long dining room table. Our designated housekeeper among the many helpers that staff Oakwood, brings over most of the breakfast from the main dining room at 7:15 but cooks eggs to order for us. After breakfast I return to my room to pray until the 9:00 Mass. Then I take one of  my sisters who is in a wheelchair back to her room and make sure she understands the day's schedule. Then I may join a small group who is having a cup of coffee (I go for a glass of water). Then I usually go out to walk around the property for about 20 minutes. Then I go to my room and do some spiritual reading, play Words with Friends, answer e-mails, and read the newspaper which is in the Westwood living room as well as in the Fireside Room and the Rosewood library. At 11:45 we begin to gather for lunch which is our main meal. Again, after lunch I go out and walk. Then, by 1:15 I am in the Chapel for an hour of prayer before the video"Armchair Exercise" that several of us go to at 2:30. We have several different tapes and it is helpful for stretching muscles that I might not be using and it gets our heart rate up. It is only twenty minutes. Then I am free to visit some of the Religious who are in wheelchairs or I may join some in the dining room for "gouter" as we have kept the French name for a snack. Mostly, I am reading and we have reunion from 4:00 to 5:00 Monday and Wednesdays, a movie on Saturday afternoons, Exposition on Sunday, etc. We will soon be seeing more of the students both the seniors who we adopt for a weekly visit, or helping third graders by listening to them read aloud, or, I want to start going to the soup kitchen in September and then I will be in a few other groups. This gives some idea of my days here, but none are ordinary.

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