Over the years I’ve worked in nursing homes, my sister has come into the building exactly once. That experienced so disturbed her that she subsequently waited outside in her car, phoning on her cell when she’d arrived to meet me.
My sister isn’t unique in her reaction. Nursing homes are places we like to avoid, unless we are called to work in one. Which is one of the reasons why visitors are sometimes sporadic, with some family members afraid to come at all.
When it’s my turn to be in a nursing home, throw me a big room-warming party. Make it an open house all day long. Hang up balloons, serve coffee, seltzer, and finger foods, and put on a little Barry White. Invite my relatives, neighbors, and friends, and show them how to visit me in my new digs.