There is something about peanut butter that is just irresistible.
Just ask the residents at the nursing home where my friend Anne and I do crafts each week.
Our project yesterday? Bird feeders. A pine cone covered with peanut butter and birdseed hung by a string from a tree. It seemed like such a simple project. But the aromatic nature of the peanut butter had our friends licking knives and nibbling at seeds. The craft was quickly shifting from bird feeder to people feeder.
But oh, the smiles on those peanut butter stained faces! Anne and I hung the feeders from trees within their line of vision from their dining areas. (Some were more impressed than others. My 97-year-old friend Juanita said, “That’s nice. Now take me back inside.” :-))
There was one happy little face that was missing yesterday. She was in the room, but this lovely lady was having a bad day. This normally spunky, giggly and singing sweet woman was not her normal Southern self. Usually she throws herself completely into every craft project and smiles the entire time. But not yesterday. There was no convincing her to come and join us.
Before we left, I went over to tell her goodbye. I couldn’t get even a single grin out of her. I asked her if she needed a hug. At first she just shook her head back and forth. But that “no” quickly turned into a strong nod and as I held her, she just let the tears spill. It just broke my heart.
I don’t know what she was struggling with. She is not able to express in words what she is feeling. But it was clear that she needed human contact and to know that she was cared for.
Another reminder that people need people. Time is too short and life is too hard not to reach out to each other and make each others days a little brighter.
Maybe it’s peanut butter or a hug. Or maybe it’s just a well-timed smile or a listening ear. But every single day has the potential for making a difference in someone’s life no matter how seemingly small.
And I can’t imagine life tasting any sweeter than that – like licking peanut butter off of a knife. 🙂
