11/Oct/2023 ~ 23/Nov/2023
📍Brocklehurst Gemstone Care Centre
When I was choosing a place for fieldwork, I thought it would be good to be able to use a lot of English. I chose to go to a senior care center for the simple reason that I wanted to have the opportunity to use English as much as possible since I came to Canada. To be honest, at first, I didn’t know anything about senior care centers and wasn’t interested in the industry there.
I was supposed to learn, feel, and think so much during the two months I worked there.
Week 1 – 11.12/Oct
It is first week of field work, I’m little nevus because I was worried about communication with residents and staff. If I can’t understand what they say, I have a good time? Or in case, it may be a nuisance. I had both expectations and apprehensions about the fieldwork. However, when I went to the workplace, my anxiety disappeared immediately. First, the staff members welcomed me very cheerfully. I was so happy and relieved. Even when I went around to greet the residents, everyone was smiling and talking cheerfully, which relieved my tension. I’m looking forward to coming here every week from now on.
And something interesting happened this week. To my surprise, a goat came to the senior care center. I was amazed at the impossible sight in Japan. I put the goat in a wheelchair and went to show it to the residents. Everyone seemed to be having fun, and I was also happy to see that they were laughing so much. I learned about a new form of therapy.
Week 2 – 18.19/Oct
I was surprised to see animals this week as well. Two chickens came to the center. 🐔🥚Just like the goat the previous week, I showed it off to the residents. Everyone seemed interesting. I’m not big on animals, so I wasn’t too happy about it, but it warmed my heart to see everyone interacting with the chickens with so much interest. ^_^
Week 3 – 25.26/Oct
On this day there was an activity called Food Lover. 🍽 The residents tasted the food and thought about future menus. We also joined in and tasted it together. The residents on either side of me spoke to me, which eased my tension. There were also actions that made me think that he was thinking of me as a priority, and I thought he was a very kind person. 🥹 It was a great experience because I got to sample the food and learn a little bit about the food served at the senior care center. 📝
Week 4 – 1.2/Nov
This afternoon I made apple pie. 🍎 It started with peeling an apple, but I wasn’t very good at it at first. However, thanks to the encouragement of the residents, I managed to finish peeling all the apples I had. The baked apple pie was so tasty! We all had a great time singing songs while waiting for the apple pie to bake. 🎶
Week 5 – 8.9/Nov
On this day, there was a program called Candy Cart. 🍬The idea was to drive a cart full of sweets to the residents’ rooms and sell the sweets. While everyone was happily buying sweets, one grandpa managed to buy 15 packs of chips. It was adorable to see her happily holding them and returning to her room. 😉
Week 6 – 15.16/Nov
On this day, We made name tags for some of the residents. 🤲🏻 We wrote their names in Japanese below their English names. ✏️ When We went to hand them over, everyone was happy, so I was very happy. 💖
Week 7 – 22.23/Nov
On the final day, we served Japanese food to the staff and residents. 🥢 We made soba and tamagoyaki. Everyone was very interested in it, so I was worried whether I would be able to do it well. After they ate it, they praised the Japanese food we made. I was very happy. ^_^ I feel like I was able to have a valuable cross-cultural exchange. 🤝
We were also challenged to complete a puzzle with one resident. 🧩 I managed to complete the puzzle on the last day by fitting the complicated pieces through trial and error. I have very fond memories with this resident.
As the end of the day approached, we went to say thank you and farewell to the residents who had taken care of us. While I was greeting them, I realized that I would never see them again, and I felt very sad. 🌧 I burst into tears while greeting the residents I had special feelings for. While I felt sad, I also realized that I had a wonderful time here.
I had a really good time at Senior Care Center!!
