Wit and Wisdom

As the great pundit Clara Jeremiah said, “I should worry and get a wrinkle.” If you’re not familiar with the name, Clara is the aunt of the Clark Marketing Director. It is our goal to provide information here that you will find entertaining, or interesting, or even the source of an occasional “Ah ha” moment.

If you have suggestions for information to share, please call the Clark Marketing Department at (616) 452-1568 extension 107 or toll free at (800) 770-1117 or send us an email.

Wit

There have been many rumors of Julie Andrews actually composing this song parody for a birthday celebration, but the author of this song parody is anonymous. Hum along to "These are a few of my favorite things" and enjoy a laugh about how it may feel to be an aging adult.

“"Maalox and nose drops and needles for knitting, Walkers and handrails and new dental fittings, Bundles of magazines tied up in string, These are a few of my favourite things.

“Cadillacs and cataracts and hearing aids and glasses, Polident and Fixodent and false teeth in glasses, Pacemakers, golf carts and porches with swings, These are a few of my favourite things.

“When the pipes leak, When the bones creak, When the knees go bad, I simply remember my favourite things, And then I don't feel so bad.

“Hot tea and crumpets, and corn pads for bunions, No spicy hot food or food cooked with onions, Bathrobes and heat pads and hot meals they bring, These are a few of my favourite things.

“Back pains, confused brains, and no fear of sinnin', Thin bones and fractures and hair that is thinnin', And we won't mention our short shrunken frames, When we remember our favorite things.

“When the joints ache, when the hips break, When the eyes grow dim, Then I remember the great life I've had, And then I don't feel so bad."

Source: Anonymous

Wisdom

Robert J. Perl has been the Executive Director of Clark Retirement Community for the past 24 years. Working in senior service organizations for a total of 33 years, Bob is a pundit in his own right.

In 2006, Bob was named Administrator of the Year by the United Methodist Association – a national honor. Criteria for this award include a proven record of leadership that results in organizational excellence. Here are excerpts of the remarks Bob made upon receiving this honor. You might call them “Perls of Wisdom.”

“During the years that I have been privileged to serve Clark, I have had many wonderful experiences, but none is more precious or powerful than one given to me a few years ago by a resident named Genevieve Hafner. She was an architect who came to live in our towne homes after her mother died. Genevieve was a single woman who had cared lovingly for her mother for many years.

As she lay dying in our skilled nursing facility, I received a call from the certified nursing assistant who was caring for her. Genevieve wanted to see me.

I went to her room; she could barely speak. So I tried to interpret what I thought she was saying to me. ‘You would like me to visit you…every day?’ She nodded. Of course I would. I felt she was lonely and did not want to die alone. So, I began and would visit for about three weeks.

After a few days, I noticed that I had to come back to see her, because there were others in her room. Before long, I realized that Genevieve had a steady stream of visitors – friends that she had made since coming to live at Clark. I needed to get in line. Yet I continued to visit her, and it soon dawned on me that she wanted me to come not for her sake, but for mine. Genevieve was giving me a gift, a final gift. She was inviting me to participate in her death. No one had ever issued me this invitation, and hers was a beautiful death for a beautiful woman. Genevieve died peacefully, surrounded by people who cared deeply for her.

Just as I thought I was caring for someone, I was the one receiving care. It happens all the time to each of us, doesn’t it? We entered into this profession in order to care for people, and they in turn care for us. That’s why what each of us does is more than a job and more than a profession; it is a deep, deep privilege. And for that, I will be humbly grateful for the rest of my life.”

Remarks by Bob Perl
2006 Administrator of the Year
United Methodist Association
St. Louis, Missouri
March 18, 2006

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