Amazing Stories at Snowline – They Will Always Be Remembered

This month’s article is lengthier than usual, but well worth the read!

Mike has been volunteering with Snowline for the last 7 years, and has done something unique and intuitive with his experiences: he has kept a journal of them! His desire to learn and his willingness to be there for Snowline patients, show his compassion and heart for the work he does.

“For me they are life-long memories that can be applied to many life experiences. They will always be remembered.”

Mike spends time with patients, being there for them in a way that most others cannot. When he is with them, Mike offers patients an open ear, and finds common ground to help them open up. He supports them in any way he can during his time with them, and regards this time as a sacred thing- an opportunity to learn from their unique and amazing lives. His journal entries are windows into something profound, reflecting on these shared times. Mike has generously offered to share them with us:

“Before I joined hospice I felt the need to help others by providing help in a peaceful way out of this life.”

“A few years ago my dad came down with cancer, and living 3,000 miles from him made me feel a little guilty so I went home to visit and saw my brother and sister taking care of him, when they could, and when I had to leave it was hard because I felt that he needed us around. When I got back to CA he passed away about a month later. I went back for the funeral and then back to CA. A couple of years went by and one day I picked up the newspaper and found in the living section of the paper an article about the growth of the Hospice industry. It compared different hospice organizations in the Sacramento area. I read it and one really hit home. It seemed like this agency was a family and everyone in it cared for each other and they cared about the physical as well as the mental and emotional health of the volunteers as much as they did about the patients they tended to. This organization was Snowline Hospice.

When I called to apply as a volunteer I was interviewed by Bonnie. As the interview went on I felt more and more that this family was for me.”

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“Prior to joining Snowline I had never really visited someone I didn’t know and had to comfort them so I thought the first visit might be a little tough. When I got the name and number of the first patient I called him, on a Friday, and asked if it would be ok to set up a visit for Monday, and he said yes if I’m still alive. I kind of froze for a second until he came back with a little got you attitude and said sure. When I got to his house Monday I met this man who had a good life, loved the guitar and was a sixties free spirit. He talked to me about some of his past experiences and his current challenges he faced, he knew the truth that he wasn’t going to be here much longer. He taught me how important it is to show compassion and how to accept your future. I learned a lot from him.”

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“Another patient I had was struggling with a liver issue and he always seemed in good spirits. The first time I visited him and his wife we were talking about our past jobs and I had mentioned that I had worked on computers . He asked if I could fix a problem with his PC, an Excel problem, I fixed it and from that time on we became more talkative and his stories and kindness hit home. I started to feel really close. I also found out that he was, like me, Catholic and we had some discussions about that as well. His wife was a dream, a very lovely and down to earth woman who kept things lite when needed most.

One day just prior to leaving my visit he said thank you your visits. You are very kind. I said good-bye and thought I’d see him next week. A couple of days after I left he passed away. Looking back on that I think he knew that was the last visit he’d see me. He showed me how to go with dignity, grace, and love. He will always be in my heart.”

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“Then there was Ms. 99. She had dementia and was going to be 99 in a couple of months, but she thought she was 99 and was going to be 100. Every time I visited her it was a brand new experience. A couple of times I would enter and she would want me to go home and leave her alone so I’d just stay quiet for a while let her nap and then leave after the time elapsed. Then there were times that she would be so excited that she was going to be 100 and would repeat I am 99 and I am going to be 100. I found out that most women from her family had lived well over 100 and she was waiting for it. One day when I went over for the visit we got to talking about her life and as the discussion progressed she reverted back to her childhood days when she would be skiing, yodeling and singing. She would tell me that when she was outside in the snow she would yodel as loud as she could so she yodeled right there. I laughed and she smiled and she told me to yodel with her, so I did. She also remembered some of the old songs and sang one of them, of course in another language (she was Swiss). It was so much fun for her and so touching to me to be able to hear about her life in so much detail. All that was in one day. After that day it was never repeated to me. As far as I know she is still alive and she has reach 100. My experience with her was so meaningful. She taught me how to act when someone is in a different world then I. What they say really does not relate to what’s happening now. They are in their own little world and although what they’re saying is real to them, it is not to be taken as complete truth. I think she gave me the perspective I needed when dealing with patients with Alzheimer’s/Dementia.”

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“One patient I had loved jigsaw puzzles, family, and loved talking politics. He loved his children and grandchildren and talked proudly about them all the time. He can’t wait to see them again and he always hoped they’d come more often. As far as politics, fortunately we like the same party, so when his wife went out shopping or doing errands, we would discuss what was going on today and before leaving we would predict what would happen by next week. This was just after the Presidential elections, which made these discussions interesting. After a few meetings we discussed books of interest. He gave me the title and author of a book he suggested I read. I told him I had a book he should read as well. He had seemed to be getting a lot better, so the next week I brought the book over. When I gave it to him he stated that he didn’t think he’d have time to read it. After that visit I received a call about 5 days later that he had passed away. Again, he passed away with dignity with the love of his family and friends. One thing he was proud of is that every week he still went to church. He valued his love of Christ. My lesson here is that you can’t stop living and giving up when you get old. Life goes on and it doesn’t end due to age. It ends when it ends. When the end is near welcome it with love, grace, and dignity.”

“These are just some of the outstanding experiences that I’ve had in hospice. I guess a lot of the lessons I’ve learned are more to do with how I give myself to others and what they have given me. The majority of the time I feel my patients have given me much more than what I have given them. The best part is that both sides have given and received a sense of gratitude. For me they are life-long memories that can be applied to many life experiences. They will always be remembered.”