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A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Hope Lonergan

Good Morning!

John Dewey proposed that the 鈥渟elf has no meaning except as contrasted with other personas鈥� and, as a consequence, 鈥渢he self and the world are correlative, and have the same content鈥�. This relational interactivity 鈥� the idea that the origins and foundations of the self emerge in reference to others 鈥� is a key part of social approaches to care work (I cared for the elderly a decade before going into comedy). With any relationship, there鈥檚 a fluidity to interaction 鈥� both to the other entities and the world at large. So carers have to be socially agile and adaptable, rather than forcing a resident into certain modes of communication.

I鈥檝e found it to be highly effective to open up space for people with dementia to participate in self-directed action, including the 鈥榙irection of travel鈥� for conversation. (For instance, a resident, out of nowhere, initiated a discussion about getting an acorn trapped in his belly-button. So I decided to share a story about the time I got a popcorn kernel stuck in my ear hole. ) I don鈥檛 subscribe to a one-size-fits-all, essentialist view of dementia 鈥� even if some people promote this.

Either way, when I鈥檓 offstage I now lead a very hermetic 鈥� almost monastic - existence. I used to love banging on. You could never get me to shut up. I was an enthusiastic conversationalist; I wanted to find out everything about a person. Now I鈥檓 part of a religion (Quakerism) where I鈥檓 forced to shut up. Which suits a 31 year old recluse, like me.

With this in mind. God, thank you for the care workers who devote their time to the vulnerable . Thank you for the moments of quiet and contemplation. These are the only moments when I鈥檓 truly free of anxiety.

Go lightly.

Amen