Katelyn's Third Reflection

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Hello, all, and welcome to another installment of my time volunteering with Best Friends. This week, one of the participants at Best Friends celebrated her 100th birthday. I am completely blown away by the different degrees of being "alive and well" that the participants have. Some are incredibly slow and low energy, while others, like the woman who celebrated her 100th, are upbeat, energetic, and all about moving and dancing around. The participants just go to show how incredibly unpredictable the process of aging and the deterioration of the brain with Alzheimer's are.  

"Dixie" lyrics, drawn on by participant

Recently, my gerontology class about aging has been discussing mental diseases and the way the brain changes with age. This topic relates so well to my TED Talk for class, as well as my volunteering. In our class, we’ve been exploring how Alzheimer’s causes almost irreversible memory loss, with the exception of music triggers. For many individuals suffering from Alzheimer’s, music spurs memories from earlier in their lives, otherwise forgotten. I have witnessed this effect myself many times, but just this week at Best Friends, it really sunk in. There is one particular participant who sits in the corner all day, silent, until it becomes time for music and singing, at which point he lifts his head, and says one word with conviction: “Dixie”. One of the songs in our song book of lyrics is called “Dixie” and always makes this man light up, smile, and participate for the duration of the song. Why? Because he is from the land of Dixie, and the song temporarily brings back sweet memories and joy. He’s so emphatic about the song that he always writes on the lyrics to draw attention to the words which have meaning for him.

It's so touching for me when the participants have moments of pure bliss, and for this man, this song is his moment of bliss. When I began volunteering, I had never heard any of the songs we sing because they are practically all from the time of the childhoods for the participants. However, I now know all the songs and look forward to singing along with the others at the top of my lungs because so many of their memories are held within the music. I'm so grateful that I'm getting to know these wonderful individuals, learn old songs, celebrate 100th birthdays, and help put smiles on their faces. Going to Best Friends is one of the highlights of my week, and I've decided that I'm going to continue volunteering over the summer, and I hope to increase the frequency and length of time. 

Until next time,

Katelyn