21 December

In The Hallway, The Mansion

by Jon Katz
In The Hallway

We were in Mary’s room when we heard a voice out in the hallway. “Red is here,” someone shouted. “Hey Red,” we heard Peggy yell and Red looked at me, and I released him and he shot out of the room and down the long hallway and right to Peggy and a friend. It was a joyous reunion, Red has many friends at the Mansion, and it is a joy to see them together. He loves to love people, and he loves to be loved. The Mansion is a good place for him.

The residents ask him how he is, how are the sheep, they ask him if he is being fed enough, if he is working too hard, if he is bothered by the cold. They have their own conversations, I am happy to sit back and listen and watch. And take photos.

21 December

The Mansion Bulletin Boards. Keeping It Going.

by Jon Katz
The Mansion Bulletin Boards

There are four Mansion bulletin boards and they are all filled with your cards and letters and messages, the above photo is one corner of one board, and there are so many messages that they are rotated almost daily. Thank you. I am going to keep this Mansion project going from my end, the Mansion people have fused with Red and me, mostly Red, of course.

You have all done enough, but it would be wonderful if you would join me in the New Year to continue your support of the residents of the Mansion, we have started something wonderful and I gather it is spreading to other facilities in other parts of the country.

I am grateful for your remarkable support and I hope you will consider joining with me in continuing to bring light and connection to people who are too often pushed to the side in our world. I see what your messages mean to them, so let’s keep it going together, if you are so inclined. I’ll be communicating on things from the other end.

It means a lot.

You can write to the residents by sending your gifts and messages to The Mansion, 11 S. Union  Street, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816. I am also working on getting the first names of the Mansion residents so people can write to them individually if they wish. Thanks you are the embodiment of the Christmas spirit.

21 December

Yarn For Connie: Mittens And Scarves

by Jon Katz
Yarn For Connie

Connie wanted me to see the yarn – this just came in the last day or so – that she has been receiving from some of you at the Mansion. She has already made six mittens for residents and staffs, and hopes to make more, along with some scarves. While we were talking, Julie Smith came in and said another box of yarn had arrived.

Your generosity is remarkable and uplifting, not only to the residents and staff of the Mansion, but to me and everyone else who reads the blog as well. I don’t usually pass out blessings, I’m not a priest, but bless you all for making Christmas so real and reminding us that people are good, when given the chance. This is the real news, even though you will never seen it on television.

The yarn is in a beautiful ring around Connie’s chair, she is excited and grateful to have this good work to do with so many beautiful materials. She says this really gives her purpose and pleasure. I can see that it does. She wanted to make sure that Red slept in the house, and not in a barn. I said he has beautiful dog beds, one in the bedroom, one by the wood stove. He has a good life.

21 December

Peggy Says Thanks, And Merry Christmas To You

by Jon Katz
Merry Christmas From Peggy

Peggy asks that I thank all of you for the many messages (some behind her), photographs, cards, yarn, caftans and scarves and other gifts that have been pouring into the Mansion. She says she reads them several times a day. Peggy is spending Christmas day away from the Mansion with her three children. She is also, she said, planning to have her hair died red again. She has a wonderful and beautiful face, and I am grateful for the chance to photograph her with my new portrait lens.

I told her her singing of “Silent Night” at the Mansion Christmas Party was beautiful, and she appreciated that, she is working on her singing and hopes to sing more.

She really wants you to know how much your messages and gifts have meant to the people at the Mansion. I am thinking of doing a series of videos from the Mansion, Peggy will be one of them. She likes the idea.

21 December

The Mansion Christmas: Under The Tree, Presents Now For Everyone

by Jon Katz
In The Mansion: Gifts For Everyone: Connie And Red today

The staff told me today that everyone in the Mansion will now have a present under the tree, and for the first time in some time. Your gifts and messages and thoughtfulness have been magic, everyone at the Mansion tells me it is their happiest Christmas.  Your letters and cards are everywhere – on bulletin boards, dressers, on night tables, clutched in grateful hands.

Connie asked me to be sure to thank you, she has two baskets full of yarn by her chair, and another box arrived for her and others this afternoon. Some people drove hours to go to the Battenkill Book Store to buy some of my books and bring them to the Mansion, I signed them today.

Two people drove from far away to drop off cookies, others sent flowers which decorate the common room where the tree is filling up with gifts. I’m bringing ten boxes of cookies tomorrow. Your generosity is boundless and I wish all of you could see what Red and I saw today – all kinds of happiness, gratitude, excitement and appreciation.

Your gifts are everywhere, including a beautiful floral arrangement that is now the centerpiece of the common room. I’ll try and get a photo tomorrow.

The Mansion is lovingly run, people are grateful to be there. But life inside is complex. Connie was in the hospital a day or so ago, she had severe pains in her back and chest and was taken to the hospital by ambulance  at 4 a.m. – she had to be strapped in a flat gurney for a long ride in the ice and snow – and spent the day being tested at the hospital. She has heart and other issues.

She is back home, it seems to be bronchitis.

She is going to spend part of Christmas day at her son’s home, there is just too much equipment for her to stay over at his house. The rooms are often empty at the Mansion, as people often go to the hospital to be checked or treated. Time has a different essence here, the outside world sometimes see so far away, but the memories of a different life are fresh.

So many people hug Red and tell me of the dog or cat they had to give away or send to a shelter when they came to the Mansion, they miss their animals acutely, and the sight of Red brings a great deal of cheer and comfort. Some people there have memory issues and forget that they know Red, but more and more, they are recognizing him.

Red has a special relationship with many of the residents, especially Connie. When he comes into the beautiful Mansion building, he heads around the corner, checks in with the office staff for some hugs, then out the door makes two left turns and goes down a long hallway and right into Connie’s room.

They are hugging and talking when I catch up. Connie’s dresser has 40 letters on it that came this week, and she reads them over and over. She lights up when she looks at her lawn baskets, “please, please, thank these people for me.” Perhaps I’ll do a video of Connie tomorrow and she can tell you herself.

They all hope some of the letters will keep coming, they mean so much. Today I visited with Connie, Madeleine, Peggy, Bill, Mary and Barbara. Julie Smith was there, she is the very energetic director of activities.

At the Mansion, I asked people how they were spending the holiday, and they asked me in return.

Some are spending the day with family, many will be at the Mansion. They will gather at the tree, have a special cookie celebration, open gifts and sing together. I hope to drop by with Red.

They feel a bit like family to me now, they know me and they adore Red. You have brought light and connection to their holiday, the true spirit of Christmas.

They ask after Maria and the animals. I can’t thank you enough for the light and joy you have brought to this special place with your gifts, thoughtfulness, love and generosity. You are an Army of Good.

If anyone cares to write to the people at the Mansion Assisted Care Facility, you can do so by sending your cards and messages and gifts to The Mansion, 11 S. Union St., Cambridge, N.Y., 12816. I like the video idea.

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