My parents came from a generation of garden devotees. They loved their garden but they also loved, visited and read about many gardens locally, across the nation and even around the world. They knew the Latin names of hundreds of plants and together they would explore the unique difference between one species to another.
When my father decided to move into a nursing home he took his trusty iphone with him. It had been his connection to the family for many years and he was not about to lose that now. As his mobility decreased, his connection to the garden and the outdoor physical environment became more difficult. He could not bend down to see the detail in the flowers he loved.
At this time, in order to give him more connection with the garden and to ensure he checked his phone regularly, I started to send him close up pictures of the plants and flowers I encountered each day. These flowers were sometimes from my garden or from my suburb as I went about my day. The many images I sent sometimes 2 or 3 a day, started to depict the seasons. He enjoyed these images and talked to everyone about what each of us was growing in our gardens or in the parks we had visited. The trick caught on and soon his children, grandchildren, friends and relatives sent their gardening & flower pictures to him.
I would inspect the day's new images at afternoon tea. My mother enjoyed the images and the discussion they generated, in spite of the dementia that was slowly taking her away from us. One afternoon I made a few of these lovely images into brooches for us to wear. She knew she was wearing a beautiful flower and that I had made it for her. She enjoyed wearing the brooch and the attention, when others remarked, "that’s a beautiful brooch". She would pat it knowingly, and nod.
My flower brooch kits have been developed from this experience. I hope that you can use the kit to engage with your loved ones. Make and wear the flower brooch and keep them cognitively well on their phones by exploring their passion.
If you would like Alice to run a workshop in a nursing home near you please get in contact email: alice@alicewhish.com
