tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7716167623179741489.post7438623374514999470..comments2023-10-07T07:48:50.326-04:00Comments on Ellena's Cocologie: The geriatric care wing of a pavillion attached to a nearby hospital. Ellenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14965850008354379369noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7716167623179741489.post-32884956493030614872015-05-29T23:37:09.394-04:002015-05-29T23:37:09.394-04:00Dear Ellena, I don't have your email or I'...Dear Ellena, I don't have your email or I'd be writing you there. Thank you so much for ordering "the Joy..." a while ago, I hope you received the book. I sent it as soon as I got the order. Hope to hear from you. Hope all is well.Natalie d'Arbeloffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07757081405040926647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7716167623179741489.post-10862372410419089382015-05-25T04:56:45.111-04:002015-05-25T04:56:45.111-04:00Thank you for visiting my blog and taking time to ...Thank you for visiting my blog and taking time to comment. Next week I will be visiting my 92 year old Mother-in-law who is in a nursing home. Your post has been interesting to me as preparation for that visit. When we visited her in hospital in February to the nursing staff she was just a difficult old woman who had fallen over - again. In reality she is someone who taught herself to read when she was three years old. Worked for the Admiralty in London during WWII and was one of the few who really knew what was happening and what was going to happen. She and her husband created their own successful business after the war. She was a woman ahead of her time. She's also been a great mother-in-law (most of the time). <br /><br />It seems so unfair that as people get older they're expected to fit in to a system that expects them to be....bland.Anjihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02562210585479814093noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7716167623179741489.post-15877085028024518532015-05-13T08:08:26.266-04:002015-05-13T08:08:26.266-04:00Ellena, your acutely observant eye, your compassio...Ellena, your acutely observant eye, your compassionate heart and your uniquely Ellena-ish humour shine through this post. You are a gift to all who are lucky enough to encounter you, in real life or here in cyberspace.<br /><br />The scene you describe so well is one I've witnessed here in the UK and in France when visiting elderly relatives or friends 'incarcerated' in similar places. Each time emotions (sadness, horror, anger, fear) cloud my mind so that I can't think rationally about the real problem which is the dependency that ageing condemns us all to endure, to a greater or lesser degree determined by health, financial means, family etc. The way that our society generally approaches this hugely difficult problem often enrages me but I have no better solutions. Your post, and your actions, are exemplary as a model of 'how to'. Thank you.Natalie d'Arbeloffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07757081405040926647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7716167623179741489.post-42184101866184316252015-05-01T12:48:52.997-04:002015-05-01T12:48:52.997-04:00I've been uncertain how to comment on this, it...I've been uncertain how to comment on this, it is poignant and difficult reading to be sure, but also very dear writing. I admire both what you are doing and the way you write about it. I hope it helps you, I've no doubt you help them.Lucyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09764296105901909328noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7716167623179741489.post-28563150632471814352015-04-30T01:57:51.250-04:002015-04-30T01:57:51.250-04:00Self-regardingly I'm drawn in by the first par...Self-regardingly I'm drawn in by the first para, since it concerns Mr R. Then I read the rest. I ask myself this awful question: is it better in these circumstances to be able to draw on memories or to have all memory wiped away. Knowing, of course, that no one in the world can provide an answer.<br /><br />I'm reminded of something else. I am against capital punishment, however horrible the crime. Far better that the criminal remains alive, ending up like your people here, perhaps able to reflect on what they did. But then I further reflect that such a legal solution would not distinguish between who have committed crimes and those who have led blameless lives. All would suffer in the same way.<br /><br />This post is painful to read even though I am uplifted by your willingness to do something about these people - whose only offence is to have lived too long. Painful or not we all need to be reminded that none of us is immune and this factor should be one of several we bear in mind as we organise our live. Given this possibility how should we behave?<br /><br />This is a serious and true post. There are not many such around. My thanks and congratulations.Roderick Robinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16828395545197001637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7716167623179741489.post-61174754048207258692015-04-29T07:15:57.582-04:002015-04-29T07:15:57.582-04:00You've captured snapshots here that open up to...You've captured snapshots here that open up to a wealth of experience. Thank you for taking us along on your visit, dearest Ellena.Rouchswalwehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01393987883437907945noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7716167623179741489.post-56530667476854042192015-04-29T05:14:42.221-04:002015-04-29T05:14:42.221-04:00You certainly brought me to another world. I mean,...You certainly brought me to another world. I mean, I realise it exists and all, but I am still refusing to believe that ageing mean getting old.<br /><br />My ignorance bordering on arrogance. I have much to learn. Thank you for this post.Sabinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09015827501648296977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7716167623179741489.post-68876137492849527452015-04-29T03:50:55.201-04:002015-04-29T03:50:55.201-04:00All too often these people are forgotten, or treat...All too often these people are forgotten, or treating in subhuman ways. Ill-treatment has always lurked in the shadows. <br /><br />But then along comes an Ellena, or a visiting angel by any other name. And some sunshine comes into otherwise forgotten lives. Bless you!Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09028121782477111901noreply@blogger.com