Reflections
I led and preached at two nursing home services for a chaplain friend who took the weekend off. Not something new. I have been doing services at nursing homes for over 30 years now. It was just one of those things that you had to do when as a parish pastor. There are always nursing homes that want worship services for their residents and the local clergy are always ready to do it.

It has always been an experience. Sometimes it has also been challenging. There was the time when one of the residents starts pulling his gown up or another time when one person started tearing pages out of the hymnal. To keep calm and continue while looking for help from one of the staff or volunteers makes life interesting.

For most of the residents who attend it is a fortunate break in a long day of the same old same old. There is a comfort as well with familiar hymns and just the comfort of a ritual activity that they have known for years. They know it is "church" even if some of them get confused about what church and who I am. Comfort for the afflicted is one of the gifts we have to offer.

I do wonder what's going to start happening in another 20 years or so when it is the Boomers attending these services. Or perhaps not attending. Will many of my generation respond to something they may not have been all that interested in before?

Lots of things are going to change in lots of areas, of course. Nursing homes and senior citizens' centers are going to face a lot of different understandings and expectations. A lot more may be demanded of them- for better or worse.

I do hope, however, that whatever happens there will be the opportunities to be comforted in the long hours that people may have to spend in such situations.