ABSTRACT
Before becoming a hospice volunteer, the author had been visiting nursing home residents. Problems regarding poor nursing home care, as well as abuse and neglect, are well-known. In this chapter, the author offers his personal observations of one method for providing patients with some hope and happiness. One fact the author discovered while visiting nursing homes is that children and dogs are very popular with the residents. The author's life became much more deliberate and simple when he is with hospice patients or their families. He had nothing to do but what he is asked to do, and no one to be with but whom he was with at that moment. The author can take the time to appreciate autumn leaves falling from trees, the warmth of the sun on my face, the song of a sparrow, or the taste of one M&M.
