Misericordia 5

While I was expecting to experience different cultures at Misericordia, I was not expecting them at our hostel. It's just not something I thought about. Being at the hostel was a new experience for me because of how international the culture there is. We met people from Germany, France, Australia, Minneapolis, Madison, India, and some east asian countries all in one week! You would think that all these different culture would result in a mish-mosh of distinct cultures. But in reality, it seems that because most everyone was there for the same reason the hostel itself had its own single culture. We were all there to experience Chicago/traveling in some form. So aside from most of the small talk, almost every conversation ended in what each person was doing in Chicago and how they were planning on getting around the city.

In terms of getting to know Chicago, we learned that the popular tourism points are Millennium Park, the Willis Tower (aka the Sears Tower), and the museum district. We got several tips on places to go for night life, and we actually went to an 18+ comedy show. In terms of travels, we heard about why people like to travel and what they like to do while they are traveling. In the hostel, a lot of people were there to experience the Chicago night life. This made sharing a room with 11 other girls interesting because our group was getting up at about 6 or 7 am every day while the other girls would just be getting back at 5 or 6 am. Surprisingly, there weren't any major issues regarding the opposite sleep schedules. But given that the population of people staying at the hostel was mostly college students, this emphasis on night life makes a lot of sense. Between all of us travelers though, the common denominator was our desire to experience the culture of Chicago. I think this common denominator is what helped the people at the hostel get along so well; there was a basic understanding of why each of us was there.

Misericordia 4

Today included what I'm sure is going to be the most difficult portion of our volunteer work. Today was our day to go play a game with the residents in the severe/profound area of campus. Having already been through 3 full days of working with mild/moderate residents, I think we were all humbled when we entered the severe/profound area. We were used to being with residents who could easily talk and could, for the most part, carry out the tasks that they had been given. Some could do their job so well that they enjoyed talking with us while we worked. However, the severe/profound ward was definitely not at this level.

When we walked into the severe/profound area, we found that this region is more of a hospital setting than anything else. Even though the stereotypical white walls and tile floors were missing, it still seemed like a hospital because of the nurses/physicians areas in the front of each hallway and because of the extensive amount of medical equipment kept within easy access. But what really made this seem like a hospital were the residents living there. I'm sure we've all seen at least one severe/profound disabled person in our lifetime. But here at Misericordia, there are at least 20 in each hallway. Every single resident we saw was non-ambulatory and only the least handicapped could say a sentence or two at a time. When we saw all of them together in their living room, I think we were all a little shocked to see so much imprisonment in one place. (I say imprisonment because every single resident still has the ability to think and feel. Their body, however, doesn't allow them to function at full capacity. This obstacle towards realizing your full potential is what makes me think of imprisonment.) I think that if I were to see any of these residents in everyday life, I would probably be uncomfortable being around them because I have no idea how to treat them. But now that I think about it, I was probably uncomfortable because I had no idea how I needed to treat these people.

After listening to the recreational trainer explain the best way to work with these residents, and after watching them play for a few minutes, I started gaining enough confidence to join the game. In the game, we had to throw bean bags to knock down cones that were set up in front of each of the residents. But since none of the residents could throw a bean bag on their own, we got to help them throw it. Honestly it was interesting to play with them because I didn't know what characteristics I should expect from each of the residents. But after playing with one of them, I actually noticed that when I seemed happier and more excited to play his arm got looser and it was easier for us to throw the bean bag. Also, when I went to throw a bean bag with another resident, I noticed that when I said "Do you wanna throw the bean bag??" in an excited tone she immediately picked up her arm like she really really wanted to play. These incidents prove to me that both having a friend and feeling like you're included is important across the mental spectra because the residents were excited to be there. This desire for friendship is something that we have in common and, like I mentioned earlier, this point of similarity is incredibly important because it helps society at large understand what this population needs. It is only through understanding the population and learning from them that society at large can best serve them.

Misericordia 3

Today is going to be, I think, the best day of our volunteer work. This is our third full day and I started the day thinking that I would simply continue with the rotations as always. But it turns out that I connected with the residents in this art room so much that I just didn't want to leave.

In the morning session I met a guy named Bryan. When we first met he was very unmotivated to work on his project (which was painting in some stars that I had stenciled onto an ottoman). After listening to him for a little while, it turns out that he was distraught because his mother had died just last week. That would be devastating for anyone. So when he told me I tried to empathize with him by letting him know that of course it hurts to lose your mother. But I also let him know that he's got a lot of support here at Misericordia, and thus he has no reason to feel utterly alone. After I said that he seemed to be a lot more functional. At first he wanted a hug, and then he immediately got to work painting his stars. I spent the remainder of the morning session working on the ottoman with him and by the end of the morning session, he specifically asked me to come back in the afternoon. So I did.

After coming back from lunch I assumed that I would just work with Bryan again. It was really nice to see him again because apparently he wasn't sure if I would come back. When he saw me he just said "You came back!" and immediately sat next to me and got to work on painting in the stars. While it was good to see Bryan again, I also made some new friends. The first is a red-head, so she's just known as Red. She was sitting across from Bryan and I so it made sense for us to get to know each other. We were just making small talk when at some point she mentioned that she was in the Misericordia choir known as the "Heart Zingers." As part of this choir, Red has met many famous people including Michael Jordan, James Taylor, and the mayor of Chicago. She sings for the mayor of Chicago every Christmas!! The interesting thing about Red is that every time she mentioned a famous person she'd met, her tone was incredibly nonchalant. She just kind of threw it over her shoulder that she'd met all these people and she really thought it wasn't that big of a deal. Regardless of whether or not she has a disability, I'd be friends with her!

The third person I met today that I really enjoyed getting to know was Lisa. Her disability was much more obvious than Red's, but she could still think and talk for herself. She was working on painting stripes onto a chair today and she was also working near us. At some point Lisa decided that she needed to get to know me better, so she started grilling me with questions like "What's your favorite food?" "What's your favorite song?" "What's your favorite movie?" She asked these in such quick succession that I didn't even have time to answer them. But we started teasing her about it and after that we became friends. Yes, her conversation tended to be simplistic because of her disability. But that didn't take away my liking for her. I think having these friends (like Bryan, Red, and Lisa) is important because it makes me want to sympathize with this population and learn more about them in order to help us treat them better.

Misericordia 2

This morning I worked in the bakery of Misericordia. While in the bakery, I got to pour the batter for ~330 cupcakes (who knew this could take 2 hours!!) and while I was pouring this batter, I got to thinking about the importance of these cupcakes. Usually I would just think "Mmm, these smell good and I'm glad I'm making them." But in the context of Misericordia, I tried to see the cupcakes through the eyes of the residents here. I remember Theresa talking about how these work opportunities give the residents "a reason to get up in the morning," and about how they give the residents' lives a meaning. When I thought about these cupcakes from that perspective, I was actually able to see that these tasks can be incredibly meaningful. Yes, I was just pouring some batter. But this batter was cooked into delicious cupcakes that were then packaged by Misericordia residents and then sold, with profits going towards funding the daily ins and outs of campus life for these people. This feeling of productivity is important for everyone because it gives people a sense of confidence in themselves. It’s also meaningful for the residents to be able to do these things because it allows them to work alongside others to make something that society wants. To them it doesn't matter how menial the task is because they're just happy to have the work.

In the afternoon I was volunteering in the canvas painting room where I listened to a short lecture about artists with disabilities, then painted a little bit with some of the residents, and heard a continuing education lecture about meditation. While it was interesting to learn about famous artists with disabilities, I think the most memorable portion of this afternoon was the lecture about meditation. While the campus is an all faith community, the majority of residents are Christian. So in the lecture about meditation, the art therapist discussed certain topics from the perspective of a Christian with disabilities. The first idea that he asked us to think about is the fact that Christian society used to think that God was punishing the parents of children with disabilities by giving them such a hardship. From my perspective, I honestly hadn't thought about how the disabled person would view that statement. To me, having a disability could be a punishment because it is such a hardship. But to hear that as someone who has a disability, you would interpret that statement to mean that you in and of yourself are a punishment. Believing that you are a punishment is so self-destructive that I don’t think anyone should have to live thinking that, including the disabled population. Another idea that he asked us to think about is the famous prayer: "Grant me the serenity to let go of the things that I can’t change, the courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." It was interesting to hear this in the context of Misericordia because it gave me a common ground with this population. We all have our hardships, and we all need to learn how to deal with them. Because this prayer is deeply rooted to how I choose to live my life, it was interesting to hear it at Misericordia because it gave me a point of similarity with the resident here. This common ground is important because it helps open the door to communication between the disabled and non-disabled populations. Being able to communicate and listen to one another is the only way progress can be made towards fully integrating the two populations. 

Misericordia 1

Today was our first day volunteering at Misericordia, and thus our first order of business was to meet with the executive director of volunteers (Theresa) and tour the campus with her. Before going on the tour she described the history and purpose of Misericordia and let us know what daily life here is like. While most of it was purely informational, she did say something that I think is significant. She mentioned that because Misericordia is a nonprofit campus, they receive about half of its funding from the government while the rest of it has to be generated through fundraisers. Given that the residents here receive quality health care around the clock, we asked Theresa if there's a tuition that each resident has to pay in order to remain at Misericordia. I think we were all expecting her to say that there is a required tuition. But the reality surprised us in a good way. She said that while there is no required tuition, it is expected of every family who has a member living at Misericordia to make regular donations to the organization. Those donations can be any amount. But Misericordia specifically asks that each family donate what they can. Theresa said that while there are some families that obviously don't pay the full amount that they could, there are others who pay more than what is wise because they are so grateful for the services that Misericordia provides. I think this is a novel way to approach these kinds of services because it doesn't mean anyone will be turned away only because they can't pay. So the system prevents discrimination against smaller families or families with low paying jobs. It ensures everyone an equal opportunity because they only ask that you donate what you can.

On the tour of Misericordia, Theresa was still describing daily life in each of the buildings. Again, most of what she said was so purely informational that most of it will probably be forgotten within the next few days. But there was another incident that I think will stick with me for a while. We were in the severe/profound building on campus and Theresa was telling us about how, in Chicago, water used to be a free resource. However, the mayor decided that they needed to start taxing water. Normally, I wouldn't think twice about this decision. A state in debt surely needs the money. Clearly that state should start charging a fee on such an essential resource to help raise them out of debt. But for nonprofit organizations such as Misericrodia, this cost of water was something near astronomical for them. Apparently many smaller organizations had to close their doors because they simply could not afford to maintain a sanitary living environment with such a high price for their primary cleaning material. As Theresa was telling us this story, she mentioned something that their executive director had said to the mayor: "I will never apologize for cleaning a resident who has soiled themselves." Now that I think about the cost of water from this perspective, it becomes clear exactly how necessary water is for organizations like Misericordia. The residents here need a larger amount of water than able bodied citizens because they can't always control their excretory systems, or how often they need to be cleaned, or if they can keep their dinner down. Everyone deserves to live in a sanitary environment and that right should not be taken away simply because this population needs more water on average than able bodied citizens.

Blog Posts from Your Trip

Welcome back, Alternative Breakers!

We hope you had a wonderful trip! For those of you completing the Blog Post requirement for the final, you can post your blogs as a comment on this post. Another option is to generate your own blog posts. Just send me an email at kualbreaks@gmail.com with the email you use for Blogger, and I will add you as an author on this blog.

I cannot wait to read about your trips!
~Ally