As soon as we got back today, Red and I went over to the Mansion Assisted Care Facility to see the letters that so many of you have been sending to the residents there. Everyone there is a bit overwhelmed and surprised by them, and so grateful, the letters have been pouring in from all over the country – Colorado, Mississippi, Alabama, California, Massachusetts, New York, Maine, Florida, New Jersey -and are being read and discussed all over the Mansion.
Peggy, above, has some in her room, the bulletin board above in the hallway outside of the activity room is now dedicated to the postcards, letters and messages still coming in. I mentioned last week that if anyone wished to write the residents of the Mansion – Red and I have been doing therapy work there and some have been visiting the farm – they could do so: Residents, The Mansion, 11 S. Union Street, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.
Honestly, I didn’t know if anyone would respond. In our culture, writing a letter takes some work in our world: envelopes, stamps, pens or computers, getting to a mailbox. I know it isn’t that much work, but in the age of e-mail, it takes some thought. E-mail takes seconds, which perhaps is why it is so less meaningful.
Red and I have been visiting the Mansion and meeting the staff. They are beaming about these letters, they are impressive, full of caring and energy. They do very hard work and, like the residents, are not recognized often for what they do and who they are. You will not see them on the news.
The letters are diverse, they contain photos and some anecdotes, there are sketches and postcards and photos as well.
I was touched to see how much your letters matter to them, on behalf of the people who live at the Mansion. They know how much it means. I can’t fully express what it meant to me to see those letters up on the bulletin board. All I did was mention the idea at the end of one portrait caption.
The messages and cards mean a lot to the residents. Only some of the letters can go up on the board at one time. Those letters are points of light, small acts of kindness and generosity.
A staff member at the Mansion mentioned it to me over the weekend and Monday was the first chance I had to get over there. Peggy and the other residents were excited about the letters. Peggy took Red and I over to see them, and she pointed out four or five that were addressed to her and which complimented her on new new red hair coloring and blue fingernails.
Some letters are addressed to individual people I’ve been mentioning, but many are addressed to the residents in general, and they can be shared with everyone.
“These are so wonderful,” Peggy said, “I love them” and she read me everyone that mentioned her. Peggy’s daughter is taking her out tonight to play Bingo, she said, and she was bringing some of the letters with her to show them around. She and Red are particular pals by now.
Life is challenging inside of institutions like the Mansion, small things make a difference. These are small acts of kindness and thoughtfulness in a world that sometimes seems hateful and cold, but they echo on a much larger scale on the other end. They mean, to the people who receive them, that they can experience one of the sweet pleasures of life, that they can be noticed and cared about and seen.
We have pushed the elderly out of sight and consciousness, they are not anyone’s favorite political issue. Your letters have made them count. Given the chance, people are good.
Thank you, and I don’t wish to take advantage of anyone’s good will, but if you care to continue sending these lessons, you will brighten the world and the lives of good people by several measures. The address is Residents, c/o The Mansion, 11 S. Union Street, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.