Lady-Links: Reaching Out through Reading

As Lady-Links, we make every effort to reach out to our dear friends in ways that are meaningful to them during our weekly visits.  Each dear friend (the precious ladies we visit who are in various stages of cognitive decline) has her own unique interests and former favorite  pursuits.  As a result, we choose activities distinctively targeted to engage a specific dear friend.  Most of our dear friends enjoy crafts, games, cards, music, or show and tell sessions.  However, recently we began visiting a new dear friend whose interest was reading….only now as her cognitive decline increases, her comprehension and retention levels have decreased.  Yet she continues to love books prompting her to ask us to start a book club that she could enjoy.

Having never done this before with any of our dear friends, we knew that we needed to formulate a type of book club in which she could be an active participant.  The problem was how to achieve that because when memory impairment occurs,  typically it becomes difficult to remember what was read.  We decided that what she wanted most was to be a part of a group who shared a love of books, not to “report” on a book herself.  We felt that could best be accomplished through what we call a “Reading Club” rather than what we think of as a formal “Book Club.”  With our Reading Club, each Lady-Link would bring a book and discuss its plot .  In addition we would talk about our love of reading in general. Topics such as how as children we learned to read, what books were popular when we were in school (remember Dick, Jane and Spot?),  and how we first learned to use a library would be great discussion starters.  It would be a very informal, enjoyable time with our dear friend involved in active listening and then joining in the discussion about what we shared. Most Lady-Links have a few favorite books in our homes that we’ve read so many times that the jacket covers are showing signs of wear and tear.  In addition to our own collections, we are blessed to have two well-stocked libraries in our retirement community.  Finding books wasn’t hard given the resources we have.

We decided to visit, two at a time, with each of us bringing a book we read  (either recently or in the past).  Each Lady-Link would tell the plot of her chosen book in “story” form, stopping along the way with questions for the group that could be easily answered.  Examples of our questions are

• What if …..?
• What do you think happens next?
• What kind of similar experience have you had?
• How would you react if this happened to you?
• How do you hope this book ends?
• What about this book did you like?

We’ve found that in telling the narrative, it is best to focus on the main plot rather than the sub-plots.  Too much detail will cause confusion and can become overwhelming. By keeping our story telling short with a simplified version of the plot and pausing to ask open-ended questions,  our dear friend is able to remain actively engaged.

 At the Reading Club visits, we’ve all come away with a joy about what transpired there.  We’ve gotten to know one another better through the reading material selected and our responses to the questions.  The interaction has been delightful, and everyone has benefited from our Reading Club visits.

Reaching Out through Reading helps us all keep connected to one another and to the world around us.  Although for some there may be difficulty in looking at a printed word and discerning its meaning, just hearing stories and making appropriate connections to what is being said is a way to keep anyone’s love of reading alive.