Don’t Judge a Book by its Cover

I work as a prep cook in an assisted living home, and days like today make it worthwhile. There’s a resident who seems to be in the beginning stage of dementia and gets confused often-forgetting where she lives, what floor she is on, walking aimlessly around. I only saw her as the sweet confused lady. The other residents talk about her and some are directly rude to her. You would think they’d be wiser at their age… At any rate she is known as that resident.

After I clocked out for the day she asked for my help in finding her room. She invited me in afterwards and started telling me about her life. She had pictures on her wall of tribes in Papua New Guinea,which I learned, is where she spent five years as a medical surgeon while simultaneously teaching the Bible to those who wanted to hear it. She pointed out children she knew and their medical conditions , tribal leaders, and renowned head-hunters (exactly what it says) like it was no big deal. She also showed me a painting of her husband, also a doctor, who treated the son of his portrait’s painter with no charge. Apparently that painter has artwork in some pretty cool places.

I was blown away by what I learned about her. Just as much, I was blown away by what a BEAUTIFUL and intelligent person she is. I was humbled to have the privilege of  hearing her talk about her life, to see snippets of her life, and to see her comfortably be herself. While she may still be confused about what floor she’s on, that’s not her. She is an extraordinary person with an extraordinary life worthy of the utmost respect. I look forward to getting to know her more. 🙂 And I guess the lessons from this are:

• Don’t judge a book by its cover.
• Everyone has a story. Respect that.
• Think of the life lived in each person you meet.