what do they need / what can we do?

My grandpa was admitted to hospital on my brother’s wedding day, it was the most emotional night for my family. I haven’t seen my grandpa for 15 years - since I left HK to Canada. That night, holding his hand into mine was stunning…

One afternoon, we got an exceptional permission from the hospital to let us stay in the hospital the whole day to make my grandpa company because of his “naughty behaviour” in the hospital. That afternoon, the moment my brother and I walked into the patient room, we saw grandpa whimpering to the nurses, saying that he was having headache. The moment he saw us, he stopped and said to my brother to stay there with him and that he was very bored in the hospital doing nothing. I was trying so hard to hold my tears when I heard that… then, I knew that grandpa was not really suffering from headache; he was just bored and wanted some attention.

Spending the whole afternoon in the hospital, I didn’t talk much; I just sat besides grandpa reading, joked with grandpa sometimes. Everytime I looked at him in his eyes, he smiled tenderly at me and said: “good granddaughter!!” my heart was sore again…

That night, leaving the hospital, both my brother and I were exhausting – more emotionally. On the way home, I thought in my heart: “what will happen when our vacation is over, and when we have to leave HK to Canada again? Who’s going to be there in hospital with grandpa when everyone is at work? Who’s going to be there when grandpa is murmuring for company again?” On the bus, I still remained silent… My brother suddenly said to me: “we should invent some board games, card games, or games for elderlies, something they can play and spend time with when they can barely move…” then, I said: “that’s why everyone should keep up their reading interest/habit.”

Grandpa was bored because he really had NOTHING to do… when he had to be monitored by all the machines, when his heart condition did not allow him to even walk… all the sudden, his world was limited to the 3’ by 6’ bed, and all he could see was bounded by the 4 white walls with other elderlies being suffered by sickness besides him… If it is true that emotions affect physical performance, then how can elderly be cured efficiently under this kind of situation?

Personally, I believe in the “magic of words” as well as the “beautifulness of words”. I have faith that reading can bring us beyond the tangible world (ie beyond the 3’ by 6’ world). When one is physically weak, when one is being trapped on a bed, when one is longing to get out of the box, what else can bring one beyond where he/she is, but a book, when one is all by oneself?

Then, I asked myself: “what if one can’t see, can’t touch, can’t move, etc? I mean, what if one just can’t physically read a printed book?” How about an audio book? How about an animated book (with both visual and sound)? And a digital book? And etc-that-I-haven’t-thought-of? I think what I believe in is the ability of using beautiful words and imaginary stories to bring one to an intangible world that one can dwell into for a period of time.

However, after all, what do elderlies really need? A beautifully written book or the sons, the daughters and the grandchildren? Where are we now? What can we do now?