Recently I had a lunch invitation that I have to share with you. It came from the son of a former patient. This lady was from Austria and was in a concentration camp at the end of WWII. Her whole family was killed. After the war she came to the United States and she often went to schools and spoke about what happened to her.
When she came to stay with us she had dementia. Her son put a US flag over her bed so when she woke up, she would remember that she was safe. She was with us for years, so we got to know her son well and I still hear from him occasionally. He was the director of the art department at the University here and traveled the world. In his travels he collected miniatures and has created the largest dollhouse I've ever seen. It's about to be moved from his house to be displayed in a museum in a nearby town, and after 6 months it will go to another museum.
So, another nurse and I went to his house, to see the dollhouse and to reminisce about his mom!
A ladder is on the other side so you can see into some of the top section.
It even has its own hot air balloon!
The church
A kitchen
There is even an old hospital room!
This little section is kid friendly for his 2 granddaughters to play with
We had a lovely lunch and enjoyed the view of the city from the patio. It was nice to catch up.
1 comment:
Dear Mari, what a beautiful view in your last photo! Wow, I absolutely love the library and the dollhouse! That Austrian lady sounds like a wonderful person! I think it is so sweet that her son put a U.S. flag over her bed when she had dementia. Bless his heart! Yes, concentration camp survivors need to remember they are safe after the horrific experiences they endured! I am sure many of them had nightmares for almost as long as they lived after such an ordeal!
Thank you so much for sharing this story and for your lovely photos here.
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