St. Luke Living Center
By SUE GUTSCH
St. Luke Living Center correspondent
Feb. 2-7
Have you ever slipped into a baking rut? The living center bakers have been in an oatmeal, peanut butter, chocolate chip rut — not that that's bad! This week we added walnuts to the chips and oatmeal cookies and had a crunchy winner again.
Sunday we enjoyed having a quartet from Aulne United Methodist Church. The Sojourner Sunday school class and their pastor, Bethann Black led our afternoon service. The men brought guitars which they played as a lovely addition to their singing voices.
We got prettied-up Monday morning, even though we weren't planning any outside socialization on our afternoon outings. This day's trips included the Marion County Lake, the reservoir, dam, and "downtown" Canada (no passport needed!).
Our Tuesday episodes on the banks of Plum Creek brought fears of freezing "stark stiff" to the young Ingalls girls as the family struggled through the numerous Minnesota blizzards. But we also felt the warmth as they quilted by the fire during the long winter — Mary sewing nine patch blocks and Laura started a bears' track quilt.
In the afternoon representatives of the hospital auxiliary were here to visit and shared the German chocolate and red velvet layered cakes, valentine candy, and snack crackers they brought. We were more than happy to provide some hot coffee. Thank you, Jean Case, Evelyn and Dick Bredemeier, Janice Case, and a very tan Joann Fitzpatrick who brought pictures and souvenirs from her recent Hawaiian trip.
Our chapel was standing-room-only Wednesday morning to join Dick Pracht and Lydia Batt in singing hymns from our hymn book. We enjoyed Dick's solos on some others, including "How Great Thou Art."
Those residents who chose to listen as the Marion County Record was read (in part) that afternoon especially liked the article regarding the lost and found gold band. With Valentine's Day spirit in the air, it provided some speculation of our own about the couple of more than 100 years ago.
Before the afternoon's scheduled events could conclude, the exercise group was positioned for our daily "work-out" which included some discussion and maneuvers related to that evening's Sunflower Showdown in Lawrence.
Our facility received a lovely gift of handmade meal accessories including napkins and bibs from Marion VFW Auxiliary. The pretty prints and designs are always topics of conversation.
This week we began a group walk each morning similar to the stadium track or mall walkers. Our group makes a loop going down 500 hall, through the hospital corridor, and back through our own 30 and 400 halls. The chit-chat heard as they "travel" indicates an enjoyable exercise.
