The Gift of Love

I’ll be honest… most of our blogs contain information and stories that were borrowed from other sources other than Absolute Care. We want to provide you with the best and most up to date information and tips on improving your everyday life, but let’s face it, the material is already out there. Someone else has figured it out and put it out for all to see. We just do the digging for you and bring you the content wrapped in a nice little orange and blue bow.  However, today’s blog will be about something absolutely personal. It’s about that thing that touches your heart in a way that the impressions will be felt for the rest of your life. It’s about that feeling you get. It’s about knowing that you have done something that will forever impact someone else’s life. That thing is the gift of love.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to travel to a nearby city to help some elderly folks who are in need of some basic items that most of us take for granted on a daily basis. The impact that these people had on me after leaving is something I will always remember.

Let me give you some back story:

One of Absolute Care Management’s Community Relations Managers came upon this small community of elderly people one day while doing her marketing “rounds”. (Side note here: One of the perks of working for Absolute Care is that you get to meet some amazing people with heart warming life stories.) After chatting with this group of 10 or so people, she discovered something heartbreaking. These people had been forgotten. Who was taking care of this group of elderly life warriors when their basic needs weren’t being met? The answer, was each other. One lady shared that she asks for toilet paper for Christmas so she can be sure that she will have some. Most of the others agreed that they were in need of basic items such as shampoo, hand soap, laundry detergent, and so many items that we take for granted every day. If one of their neighbors doesn’t have supper one night, they cook and invite them over. One gentleman tends a garden and shares the food with the whole complex. While they try to care for each other, sometimes it’s just not enough.

Items before we bagged them up.

So we had this wonderful idea to do a drive for these people. The employees at the Absolute Care Management Jonesboro Agency collected money to purchase the basic items that these people had a need for. The items that each person received included: laundry detergent, hand soap, shampoo, toilet paper, facial tissues, bar soap, toothbrushes and toothpaste, cleaning wipes, plastic storage bowls, dish soap, and some foods items such as crackers, potted meat, pudding, peanut butter and coffee. I’m sure you can pick out any one of these items (probably all of them) and walk to your cabinet to get it out right now. These people did not have that luxury.

It’s easy to overlook someone who on the surface doesn’t “need” you. Absolute Care Management provides homecare services for the disabled elderly and homebound, but these people needed help of a different kind. They needed someone to care.

The items that we delivered yesterday were basic and very small in quantity, but the looks on their faces when we handed them the bags were absolutely priceless. One lady came out of her apartment a few minutes later to make sure she gave me a hug and thanked me. These people were genuinely excited about items that are probably going bad in my pantry as I type.

The lesson I learned yesterday is don’t underestimate the power of a simple gift. Even a sweetly worded greeting card sent at just the right time can impact someone beyond what they could have imagined. These simple items may only last these people a month, but the joy that they gave me will last a lifetime!

-Whitni, Creative Director at Absolute Care Management