As we continue to celebrate the successful launch of the transformative book “Journeying Together” by Deacon Joseph Cortis and Pia Matthews, we’d like to highlight a special piece that was shared during the launch event in June – “A Psalm for Those Journeying Together with Dementia”. Penned with profound empathy and insight, this poem delicately captures the profound experiences of caregivers navigating the path of dementia. It is a poetic journey of love, resilience, and unwavering strength. Intricately tied to the narratives explored in “Journeying Together”, this Psalm elevates the book’s essential message of shared struggle and enduring spirit. Witness its heartfelt recitation in our attached video link, or delve into the text for a quiet, personal reflection below.
Lord, you have searched for me and know me as I am. If I feel lost, you can find me, still. You understand the thoughts of my heart even when words escape from me. You perceive the way I have in mind when my friends cannot see the road ahead. You pick up the fragments of my desires, provide loving hands to weave these threads into garments to protect me. Even if I forget to praise you, your faithfulness feeds me; you remember my history, and share all my discoveries.
Lord, you search with us, and know how we long to make smooth the path for our companions, sweeping away the obstacles that trip them up. When we are bruised and feel broken, you soothe us with your wounded hands; when our heads ache and spin, you lift from them your crown of thorns. When loneliness closes us in, your presence opens new doors. When we stumble, you are there to steady our steps. The knowledge of you shines on our high spirits, and brightens our lowest moments.
Lord, you will always know your sheep and search for them, the ram, the yearling, the ewe, and lead us to the fold, safe from the wolves of the world. You will place your laughter in our mouths, even as our eyes shed your tears. You nourish us at your table, and refresh our thirsty souls with grace. We are yoked with you in a trinity of care – needed, given, received. All the day long, you walk with us, and when the night closes in, and darkness falls there you are, beside us, our place of rest.
Hannah Stone, poet-theologian to Leeds Church Institute , June 2023
Please join us as we celebrate the launch of a remarkable book “Journeying Together” that sheds light on the experiences of caregivers for individuals with dementia. Written by Growing Old Grace-fully trustee Deacon Joe Cortis, in collaboration with Pia Matthews, this poignant work gives voice to those who tirelessly care for their loved ones. The book will be officially launched in Leeds on Tuesday, June 27th, at 1:30 pm. To download the poster with further details please click the link below.
Journeying Together is a book co-written by Deacon Joseph Cortis, who is a trustee of Growing Old Grace-fully and Pia Matthews from St Mary’s University, that offers practical information and hints on how to accompany someone with dementia. This book is an indispensable resource for those caring for a loved one with dementia, offering insightful and valuable guidance based on the authors and contributors’ personal experiences.
Journeying Together provides an important resource for those who may feel overwhelmed or uncertain about how to support their loved ones.
This book is a must-read for anyone who wants to learn how to provide effective and compassionate care for those living with dementia, and it offers a vital message of solidarity and support for all those on this challenging journey.
This book serves also as a resource for professional carers, clergy, religious and social action groups such as SVP conferences, parish councils, lay faithful fulfilling a ministry in their parish.
The book is available for purchase at Redemptorist Publications for £11.95, and can also be purchased from St Paul’s bookshop at Hinsley Hall. To purchase your copy online: Click here.
Pippa Bonner shares insights from her encounters as a Pastoral Worker with older people.
Adapted from a talk given by Pippa at our event on 26th April 2022 at Wheeler Hall, Leeds.
I am an older person (a younger older person, rather than an older, older person,) and a Catholic who retired a few years ago only to hear about a part time job in pastoral care. Now I work offering pastoral care to older women in a Nursing and Care Home. I am a widow with children and grandchildren. I come from a social work background, then moving to hospice work where I coordinated a Bereavement Service. At the same time I worked for a part time Masters Degree in Theology.
You might also like to know that I can knot balloons quickly, have a reasonable serve at tennis, and have found my singing voice improves with age. I dislike housework and gardening but love reading stories to my younger grandchildren.
There is nothing special in any of this because all older people gain experience in all sorts of ways, but I am ‘embracing the view’ of later life. However I have some hearing loss, cataracts and am being investigated for wobbly legs. All of these symptoms make me wonder, am I moving towards being ‘over the hill’ ?
What is special are some of the encounters I have had with older people, (older than me), which illustrate their faith, their wisdom, grace, courage and humour despite their losses, pain, vulnerability and, in some cases, dementia.
‘Models of Ageing’ and Unexpected Encounters
I have encountered great models of ageing as people patiently adjust to a new pain or a decrease in mobility. However, next day they may feel frustrated or anxious.
Older peoples’ situations can vary from day to day. I have learnt about encountering people in the moment and trying to respond in that moment. Some people like structure, planning and appointments, which I honour too, but others no longer do. They want to talk NOW.
I find I often can respond in the moment. Tomorrow, later in the day, the moment may have passed.
In my parish community I am encouraged and comforted by some of the parishioners in their 90s who come to Mass and other events. At least three who live alone near the church, walk to Mass using walking frames or sticks. Priests and people come and go but these three represent for me the faith, love, humour, highs and lows, and gritty persistence in the life of the Parish. I know they have bad days too, but they are an inspiration. We all know people like these: strong models of living life, however tough it is (who would be very embarrassed to be described like this!)
I also want to give a few examples that were unexpected gifts for me, of older, older people who may be viewed by some as being over the hill. But are they?
For example, one woman with dementia often has disturbing thoughts some of which are delusional and paranoid. It is distressing for her and those around her.
However, a while ago she said to me, in a clear moment, that when she gets wound up sometimes poetry helps her to unwind. So, I and others read poetry with her for short periods. Sometimes she reads familiar poetry she learned at school.
She also started to fear going out. On a lovely sunny spring afternoon recently, I took her out in a wheelchair. She pointed out to me the bird song and we enjoyed the flowers. We sang songs. One of them was “Row, row, row your boat “and I realised that the walking stick she insisted on clutching in the wheelchair had become the oar of our boat as we travelled past daffodils and even a butterfly in the March sunshine. She soon went back to feeling distressed but she had had some respite from her disturbing thoughts and we saw her transient enjoyment.
Another woman with dementia had lived a contemplative religious life for many years. At the end of her life she was mostly silent but had a wonderful smile. She was an example of one aspiration of older age: “being rather than doing”. Despite her dementia I and many others were aware of her deep spirituality.
One of her favourite expressions before she lost most of her speech (though she would still sing) was “Oh, how lovely!” Sometimes, I would sit with her in silence, holding her hand. I felt so much strength coming from her. It restored me and seemed to comfort her as she smiled.
Similarly, another resident who had advanced dementia had been a very gifted teacher, writer and Spiritual Director. Part of my role in the Care Home is to facilitate a monthly Discussion Group. We were going to be discussing Pope Francis’ document, Laudato Si which is about the world and creation. I had gone with her around the garden.
Suddenly she was praising the flowers and trees around her in a deep reflective, beautiful way. As soon as our walk was over, I wrote down what she had said and added it to the handout we were using. She came to the discussion and saw the piece she had said in the garden.
She joyfully read it aloud then and later in the session she read it again! Everyone was pleased to see a strong glimpse of the previous person they had known. Her joy and the pleasure of the other residents seeing her joy and a reminder of her work was a gift to all of us.
Embracing the View – with it’s beauty, light and dark patches
It goes without saying that I have also encountered deep pain and distress in my pastoral work. Older people may feel they are encountering numerous losses in their life: bereavement and other losses of health, independence and agency. For some older, older people their lives are punctuated by so many adjustments to new losses (not necessarily deaths), pain and changes in their daily lives that the process of finding some kind of equilibrium can be a recurring challenge.
People usually find that resilience means not blocking out the emotional pain, but living with it, and in time, finding altered ways of living.
All of us can listen, support and accompany people at particular times. Compassion is literally about staying “with the passion”, the passing or pain, of the moment.
How can we continue to find hope, faith and perseverance? How can we embrace the view? Those of us who are older may have less physical strength but have life experience to know when we are managing, need some support or where we can continue to support others around us.
Ageing, whether as a younger older person or an older, older person, seems to mean adjusting to new ways of managing how we feel, how we cope and experience new hurdles and happy times, often all at once. We embrace the view with its beauty, light and its dark patches.
The Mass is an important part of many Catholics’ lives, particularly older Catholics. For many people with dementia, Mass remains important in some way. Often the words, rhythms, actions and hymns are recalled and people may join in for a time. One woman sometimes bursts into tears when the words of Jesus’ death are mentioned, but she can also become loudly ecstatic at the consecration. These are unfiltered, undiluted responses which teach us all to value what is happening. We should be grief stricken or ecstatic at the same moments, but repetition and an adult sense of decorum can get in the way.
Growing Old Grace-fully became aware during the Covid lockdown how some older people preferred watching Mass or other church services online. People could choose a priest or church or time that suited them, and could participate from a comfortable, familiar armchair rather than journey to church. Some could hear the homily better. Growing Old Grace-fully hope that some streamed Masses will continue.
So, are we or others embracing the view or over the hill? I think we can only answer for ourselves.
I have often noticed that people who society might deem as being “over the hill”, appear to meas having moments of great understanding, wisdom, joy and vision.
Pippa finished her talk by reciting this poem:
Taking Communion to Jennifer by Fr Michael McCarthy From his collection of poems ‘The Bright Room’ published in 2018.
I find her in good form.
We chat awhile, then move on to pray.
As we make our way through the Our Father
I sense a presence in the space behind me.
Concentrating on the moment, I continue:
Lord I am not worthy that you should enterUnder my roof…As she receives the host
A warm breath caresses the back of my neck.
Turning, I see an elderly resident in slippers
Her face stricken. A single sob escapes from her.
Placing a hand on her forehead I say the blessing.
Her full-on smile radiates down the length of my arm
Something is unlocked in us.
At this event you will hear firsthand the story of someone living with dementia and the story of a carer of a person living with dementia, followed by a choice of interesting workshops.
Leeds Caritas and partners (Dementia Friendly Forum) have organised this event as part of Dementia Action Week to explore the experiences of those living with dementia, and ways in which we can support them in church and everyday life.
Growing Old Gracefully is pleased to be involved in the planning and running of this important event.
Programme:
Short Liturgy
Voice of a person living with Dementia
Voice of a Carer
Break out rooms/workshops (you can choose from one of the following):
Dementia Awareness
Types of Communication with people living with dementia
Dementia and Faith
Current Dementia Campaigns
Advanced Care Planning
Plenary
Where to find out more online
Call to Action
TO ATTEND PLEASE EMAIL GREGORY STACEY BY 19th MAY AT gregory.stacey@dioceseofleeds.org.uk and state your first and second choices for the workshop topics above. Thank you.
Recognising how hard it has been for people who are living with dementia during the COVID crisis, and the increasing need for us all to understand dementia better, Dementia Friendly Leeds now has weekly online Dementia Friends sessions.
To book your place, click HERE and look for ‘Dementia Friends for Volunteers in Leeds‘. They are every MONDAY at 12 noon.
A Dementia Friend is simply somebody that learns about dementia so they can help their community be more dementia friendly. Dementia Friends help by raising awareness and understanding, so that people living with dementia can continue to live in the way they want. As part of the work of the Friendly Communities project we want to support volunteers and staff in Leeds to be able to offer good support for people who are living with dementia.
Maybe you had been meaning to attend a Dementia Friends session before but hadn’t got round to it, or maybe you have recently become more aware of dementia and how it affects people you know. Or perhaps you attended a session a few years ago and would like a refresher…
..Well now you can attend an informal online session right in your own home!
How to book:
The sessions are every Monday at 12.00 – 12:40 online (they will be adding more on different days).
The session will either be a webinar (sound and no video, using typing to join in) or livestream (using sound, video and some typing).
Go to the Dementia Friends website to register with your contact details then you can book your place.
Look for the sessions with the title: Dementia Friends for Volunteers in Leeds which are scheduled on Mondays at 12:00.
Short of time? Alternatively Alzheimer’s Society offers a 5 minute Dementia Friends video for people who do not have time to do the 40 minute interactive session.
Accessibility: Get in touch if you have any questions about the accessibility of the sessions, if you need to do the session at a different time or if you have any other questions.
Need some help to ensure your church or Parish Hall is more Age and Dementia Friendly?
Time to Shine have developed a detailed and useful guide for businesses and organisations to support and encourage you to take action to become age and dementia friendly.
One of our trustees, Pippa, led a talk about Dementia within a Charismatic Day in our Diocese in the context of The Year of Mercy. Pippa defined Mercy in this context principally as compassion. Fr Keen’s quotation is particularly relevant for those living with dementia and their carers.
Mercy is the willingness to enter the chaos of someone else’s life. James F Keen, SJ
The talk included helpful advice when speaking with a person with dementia who has had a bereavement. Maria Longfellow, an Occupational Therapist, put the material together from a number of sources. It is an area that many wonder how best to handle but here are some resources that might be helpful.
In the 29th August edition of ‘The Tablet’, there is an excellent interview with Fr Michael McCarthy, our own local poet-priest, focusing on his eagerly awaited third collection of poems, The Healing Station. This is the fruit of a three-month creative writing post in the Adelaide and Meath Hospital in Dublin, working with acute stroke and dementia patients. As the article concludes, dementia is reaching epidemic proportions and none of us can afford to ignore it. There is a growing awareness in many parishes of the challenges this poses and people are beginning to ask the question “How can we make our churches more dementia-friendly, more inclusive?” All too often, people with dementia and their families become excluded and marginalised.
An upcoming event organised by Growing Old Grace-fully will provide an opportunity to hear more about Fr Michael’s writing and his experience of working with people with dementia and their carers in hospital, and in his life as a parish priest.
On Saturday 12th September at St Aidan’s Parish Hall,31 Baildon Road, Shipley BD17 6AQ, Growing Old Grace-fully is holding a day on dementia: “Welcoming People with Dementia”. This day is intended for all those involved with caring for or ministering to people with dementia. Eucharistic Ministers or SVP members wanting to learn more about dementia and how to make a visit to someone with dementia easier and more meaningful for both parties will find this day very helpful. Liturgists too may find this useful for planning prayers and services which people with dementia might attend.
Fr Michael is speaking alongside Rev. Gaynor Hammond, a Baptist Minister, who has encouraged churches to become more dementia friendly and has written a number of books full of practical ideas to help parishes, including “Help, We have Dementia!” and “Growing Dementia-Friendly Churches.”
If you would like to discuss how Growing Old Grace-fully might help support older people in your parish then please visit our contact page here and get in touch.
