13.....9.....6....1....

Once upon a December

I know this post is long past due, but December was the busiest month for me! I had to take all my finals early because I was going on a 6 day Mexican cruise during finals week. I also had a ton of stuff to do for my Relief Society girls and with Christmas just around the corner I was losing my mind, there was so much to get done. (Remind me to never go on a cruise during finals week or in the month of December again) Because this post is already so long I will wait till another date to talk about the cruise and that way I can post some pics too!

Everyone thinks that I am crazy because whenever I go home on weekend or holidays I work, work, and did I mention WORK! They may think that I am insane and not very often will I agree, but they just don't understand how much I adore my job. I work at an assisted living as a CNA. My mom also works there, we both took the class together a few years ago and were lucky to get hired at the same place when we were done. I worked every day I was home for the break, double shifts and all the Holidays. I know you are probably thinking wow that girl must not have a life, I do, but the life that I choose to have right now is with the people at Legacy House :) My family was in town and I was sad to not be able to spend as much time with them, but I also consider the residents to be my family and a lot of them had nothing so I chose to be there for them. We can't forget yes of course I enjoyed all the extra money coming in from all the extra hours I was working.

During my break up North I had 9 friends getting married in the month of Dec. I tried to make as many as I could, but with as much as I was working I admit there were a few I missed out on because I was so beat. (Sorry guys) It was so fun to see them get married off and to be a part of their weddings, I couldn't believe that some of them were now married and I wouldn't see them much, but I was so glad that they were so very happy! As excited as I was about the weddings something else happened in the month of Dec that I was not so fond of, not one bit. First my little sisters best friend KC's dad died, and my mom's good friend Carol's dad died who was Elder Worthlin. Across the month of December 11 of my precious friends from Legacy returned to their loving Heavenly Father. This making 13 deaths in one month.

While working at Legacy I have always been pretty lucky that I never found anyone after they had passed or had to deal with very many deaths, normally the people had passed while I was away at school. This December must have been the choice month to die. Some very unexpected and some who had long been awaiting to get rid of their pain. Losing them was very hard for me, harder then I would have expected. I was very close to most of the residents but for some reason there was one sweet lady who's death hit me like a ton of bricks, her name was Thelma. She was 93, about 4' 10'' and weighed about 90 lbs. She was an incredible lady and even with her disability she still managed to shine. I remember when she first came to Legacy, she was a little quiet and shy, but shortly after I began chatting with her she opened right up. She'd had a stroke and her right side was paralyzed, she didn't talk much but I knew her face and we were able to communicate even without words. What a lot of people don't understand is that although the residents may have Alzheimer's or cannot talk, they know you, they know your intentions and they are very aware of what is going on around them. I learned this very quickly while working there, I would go away to school and come back not thinking they would remember me and they did, not just my name, but where I had been and what I was studying. I remember that every time I came back, I would ask little Thelma if she remembered who I was and she would say yes....Stefanie. That was like music to my ears that she never forgot. Even after she started getting sick, she still knew who I was. I was with her the night she began to go downhill, her daughter Janice, who is a saint, would come in every single day and feed her lunch because she struggled to do it herself. While I was there over the break, I would feed Thelma dinner every chance that I got. She wasn't talking or eating much then and I could tell in her eyes she was not well. One night she wasn't eating for me and she kept asking for Janice, I thought that she was just having a bad night and I contemplated if I should call Janice or not. I ended up getting her ready for bed and hoping that some rest would do her well, the next morning she was worst and was not talking at all. I felt horrible because I felt like her last words and conversations was with me, and that I should have called her daughter. Thelma passed away a few days later and it was really hard on me, one of the hardest things about the residents passing away is watching the sorrow that their families go through, especially when they have to come and move out all of their belongings.
A groups of us from Legacy went to the viewing and then Laura and I went to the funeral the next day. It was a beautiful service and I was able to see and hear so much about Thelma's life before I knew her.

I want to thank my Heavenly Father for all my wonderful blessings, and for the opportunity I have everyday to make someones life better. I am the happiest when I am with these people and I can guarantee you I am getting far more out of it then them, I have been blessed in so many ways and I wouldn't change that for anything. It is hard to lose them and see them go, but I have become stronger and more capable to be the support for them when needed. Once I am away from them it all comes out, but I know that these people are in a better place, that many of them have been waiting for it for a long time and that they have so many angels on the other side who have been longing to embrace them.

To sum it up 13 deaths, 9 weddings, 6 days in another country and 1 month I will never forget

I hope you all had a wonderful Holiday season!