Last Wednesday, we had our last reading discussion on the last couple of chapters of Happiness is a Choice We Make. My group and I spent a lot of time talking about each of our biggest take-aways from the book, and how many times the book made us cry (except Anthony, who was confused by all the talk of crying). We had a very interesting conversation about how we will use our knowledge from the course to intervene in acts of age-insensitivity or ageism. It was very interesting how we all had different approaches, largely based on our personality types and experiences. Mikayla brought up a great point– that gentler words tend to be more impactful than aggressive ones. Our small group reading discussions have been one of my favorite parts of the course. Getting to hear three or four different perspectives allowed me to get a lot more from the book than if I had read it alone. I think that it was also one of the best ways to get to know the other LCS’ers. Yesterday we went to the Casa de Manana retirement community near La Jolla Cove. I’ve probably walked by it over two dozen times and always assumed it was a hotel. Seeing how well resourced and all inclusive the ocean-front community is, I expected to hear great things from the residents. Even then, I was surprised by how highly the residents spoke about their experience at Casa. In our smaller group conversation, Griff emphasized to us how smoothly he integrated into the community, and how friendly all of the residents are. Out of the two hundred people he’s met there, there’s only four he wouldn’t want to talk to again! He said that throughout his life, he has never been a part of a more diverse, intelligent, or interesting community. Our conversation focused mainly on advice the residents wanted to give to us. I think the biggest one was about travel– do it as often, as long, and as far as possible, and ideally without an itinerary. They also gave us a rough timeline of when they think key points in our lives will be, and reminded us not to worry too much because we still have a long way to go. Being able to talk to the residents about their highlights and hardships was very rewarding, and a great way to root the things we’ve learned in class to real experiences.
Why is six scared of seven? Because seven eight nine! Week six was super packed with midterms, and I still can’t wrap my head around the fact that we’re halfway through week seven. Like a little reward at the end of my exam-heavy week, we put on the Love, Connect, Care event at the Gary and Mary West Senior Wellness Center this past Saturday. I was very happy to see that people were excited to use our “photo booth” area and that they enjoyed the props we brought. I also enjoyed seeing how the other activities came together, and that every single one of them was so well-received. Watching the elders get excited and competitive about the ring-toss and cornhole was also so much fun. I’m super glad that so many people stuck around for the raffle giveaway even though there was a bit of a language difficulty in explaining the raffle and prizes– Google Translate for the win! One woman approached a group of us at the end of the event to tell us how much she enjoyed herself and that she hoped we would be back next weekend. It was such a nice gesture and a great way to wrap up the day. :,) This morning we visited Barrio Logan to assess the community for age-friendliness. We used a checklist to look for elements that could help or hurt the experience of elders and people of all ages. We focused on outdoor spaces and buildings, including checking for walkability and accessible resources. In our walking group, we identified some potentially problematic areas, like lack of shaded, accessible seating, uneven pavement, and the absence of public restrooms. There were definitely positive aspects to the neighborhood as well, like many age-friendly buildings with ramps and some designated social areas. Professor Lewis’s insight about the neighborhood helped me utilize the “asset frame” and better understand the strengths of the community beyond the built environment, such as the camaraderie and resilient activism. Going into week 8, I’m excited to get going with the capstone project, finish reading Happiness is a Choice We Make, and see everyone in class on Wednesday!
This past Wednesday we visited the Gary and Mary West Senior Wellness Center! It was very exciting to not only be able to meet the others in person for the first time, but also to be out in the community. I have learned about the inequities in access to dental care in previous classes, so I was very pleasantly surprised to find out that the center houses its own dental clinic! I love how thoughtful the construction of the building is, especially the offices on the second floor. I have experienced having to walk across entire buildings to get from one medical service to another, and I can imagine how daunting that could be for someone who has never been in the space before and may not personally know the people they will be consulting. I think the idea of the “warm hand-off” from professional to professional is a really great concept that should be implemented in many more settings. Even in places like elementary schools, I think it creates a much more empathetic and inviting environment to be personally escorted to the destination, even if it is just down a hallway. The services of the center are designed to take into account so many different factors and perspectives of the needs of the elders they serve. It is so evident in the faces of the elders that the center creates a truly safe space. I am very excited for us to visit again next week for the Love, Connect, Care Event!
This week in class we shared the first half of our Oral History projects. I had such a great time listening to everyone’s presentations – all of the EPs had such beautiful words and pictures to share. I think it is very interesting how despite being of very different backgrounds, many of the EPs had similar lessons for their MP. I was so heartwarmed by the stories of the EPs finding love, often in unexpected ways and places. It was also very emotional to hear how much this project impacted everyone. In addition to progressing through the Oral History presentations, we are continuing to prepare for the upcoming Love, Connect, Care Event! This past weekend, as well as in class this week, Mariyah and I discussed our ideas and planning logistics with Dr. Lewis and the TAs. I’m very happy with the progress we’ve made and how our ideas have evolved over the last couple weeks. We had a lot of fun bouncing ideas off of each other and with the arts and craft activity group. We are so excited to have the opportunity to memorialize the event, and we hope the elders have a memorable experience and love the finished product! This coming week will also be our first in-person class (also my first in-person day of school in 2022!) and I am so excited for it! I think it will be very nice to meet everyone face to face after spending the last few weeks getting to know each other on Zoom.
Amid the trepidation of the latest COVID-19 surge and return to online learning, it has been delightful to engage with the other members of the cohort, our TAs, Dr. Lewis, and our guest speakers. I particularly enjoy discussing the week’s readings in our small group breakout rooms. I love to hear everyone’s discussion questions– it is always interesting to find out what parts of the text stand out to different people. My favorite reading so far is “Happiness Is a Choice You Make”. I love how author John Leland integrates his own lived experience with anecdotes of his six elders. In the last three weeks I have expanded and refined my understanding of the life course perspective, and some of the factors that impact the aging experience. Particularly impactful was the presentation by Elisa Barnett and Jason Cuneo from the LGBT+ Community Center at North Park Senior Apartments. Elisa and Jason shared so much insightful information about the services the center provides, as well as some touching stories of the experiences LGBT+ seniors face. During the presentation I realized that many of the practices I associate with allyship and inclusivity are oriented to create safe spaces for specifically younger members of the LGBTQ+ community. Elisa and Jason provided examples that helped me to understand how small gestures (wearing pride pins, listing your pronouns, etc.) are especially significant to seniors in the community given their intersectional identities and arguably more complex experiences. Being able to engage with these concepts “face-to-face” has made the start of the course feel so inviting and effortless. I’m very excited for the upcoming weeks!
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Tiffany Nakajima Tiffany Nakajima is a Public Health major with a concentration in Epidemiology and with a minor in Archives
March 2022
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