Day2

The class in the morning was about the summary for yesterday and a more elaborate explanation about the workshop that we are going to design for the rest of the days, as well as previous famous workshops in various countries designed by other people. Then it was time to allocate the groups. Since all the members in the groups were selected randomly by the teacher, we were quite shy and reserved at first, and all we did in our discussion was sharing the related articles we had found and all the knowledge and information we gained. All of us give suggestions based on our personal experiences. For instance, the passing game in PE classes inspired me, and I suggested replacing the ball with a huge wool ball to design a warm-up activity for the participants. This suggestion was accepted by all of my groupmates, since it is easy for anyone to play and provides us with the opportunity to get to know the participants better.
We went to Jing Mei Elderly Service Center after lunch. The service center was quite different from what I expected. Instead of a calm and quiet environment like the hospitals or nursing homes, the atmosphere was really warm and active. There were elderly people reading books conscientiously, occasionally helping the half-rimmed glasses that almost slipped off their noses gently, their rough fingers rubbing against the pages, and their eyes filled with the brimming desire for knowledge.

We then entered the main hall of the courses, all the furniture there being comforting burlywood, the warm yellow light hanging over pastel boxes with various kinds of games for dementia. In the one-hour cross from the owner of the service center, we learned the symptoms of dementia and how it deteriorates, broke a lot of previous stereotypes, and learned how to communicate with our participants with patience and love during the workshop that will be on stage on the last day of the project. After the lecture, we were led to the public area and visited the Memory Café and some exhibitions. All the volunteers in the Memory Café are elderly people suffering from mild dementia, and the label of this disorder did not limit their ability and passion while working even a bit. Facing tons of us coming to donate to the café (all the money earned by the café will be donated to the service center for further support for dementia), they could not hide the sincere and sweet smiles on their faces, and repeated “Thanks for your donation” to all the students and teachers who are taking orders. Though there were merely seven options on the menu, each of the words was written by hand with patience and earnestness, and was accompanied by cute hand-drawings.

After the order, teacher San show us the exhibition part of the center. The shelves were full of dazzling tableware, toys, groceries, etc., including but not limited to safe and soft bowls, forks and spoons for dementia, games help teach the patients how to tie their shoes and wear their clothes, and tools for aromatherapy. During the visit, I deeply felt the care and warmth the service center brings to dementia——not merely giving medicine, leading rehabilitation exercises, providing counseling or therapies, but truly treating them as their own parents and giving great care from the bottom of their hearts.

We watched another movie about dementia in the center. I deeply felt the uneasiness of the caregivers of dementia, and further learned about current publications on dementia, charities, commonweal organizations, and social welfare. I got a badge with the writing “dementia friends” on it in the end of the whole activity, and further determined to continue spreading knowledge of dementia and art therapy after coming back from the project and provide this special group of people with extra help by organizing activities by myself.

In the evening, we held a discussion which lasted more than two hours. I got out the materials I brought from my home from the suitcase, and all my groupmates appreciated them and decided to design two more related small games. We also confirmed the name of our workshop, and discussed other tools and materials we need, such as stickers, boards, colored papers, and paintbrushes. Additionally, we prepared the alternatives and selected the background music. And really surprisingly, I was selected to be the leader of the group and will lead the whole process of the workshop! This will be a quite challenging task for me, but I believe that I will be able to gain a lot of improvement by completing the project.

I finished this diary at half past eleven at night because I was too busy with designing the workshop and preparing the scripts and PowerPoint as the leader. However, not exhausted at all:) Because I know that I’m dedicating myself to something I really liked, and all feelings left are excitement and anticipation.