Living Well poems
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We recently asked patients, carers and colleagues to use poetry, art and photography to describe their experience of our Living Well Services.
Living Well
by Graham
I come along to Living Well
At the Hospice on Thursdays
Here we find all the staff
Help us in many ways
Gemma and her lovely team
Will put us all at ease
Then we have the volunteers
Who make the coffees and the teas
We have talks and exercises
There’s singing, music too
Plus there’s lots of other things
For all of us to do
The Hospice has a Bistro
At lunchtime I go there
The food is really very nice
And the prices are quite fair
They have people there to help you
Who will always try and please
I will have a pot of tea
Jacket potato filled with cheese
The Hospice is a lovely place
And I want to say thank you
To all the staff and volunteers for everything they do
The wife and sister-in-law of one of our patients subsequently penned these beautiful poems, which they have given permission for us to share with you.
We think they really capture what the service is all about.
Living Well
by Bronwen Percival
I need to feel safe,
I need to feel safe and secure.
I need to live what life I have left
Happily and meaningfully,
Without my terminal diagnosis hanging like a black cloud
Over me.
I need comfort.
I need comfort and support.
I need to talk and be listened to
By someone who understands my fears and hopelessness
And dread for what lies ahead.
I don’t need pity.
I need to feel valued and useful.
I need to concentrate on what I can do
Not what I can’t do.
I need to feel and acknowledge my emotions
And not bury them inside of me.
I need peace of mind.
I need peace of mind and some good practical advice.
There are a mountain of things going round in my head
That need sorting.
Will, Power of Attorney, funeral wishes, end of life preferences,
And I just need to get these sorted,
Put them to the back of my mind
And then I can get on with living.
So many needs,
So little time.
So little energy and motivation
To tackle this all on my own.
Who can help me?
The team at Arthur Rank!
I now feel safe and secure
I have comfort and support
I can talk and be listened to by people who understand
I feel valued and useful
I can cope with my emotions
I have peace of mind
I am not dying
I am Living Well.
What is the Meaning of ‘Living Well?’
by Karen Powell
Amazing
Restorative
Therapies.
Hearing and sharing.
Unburdening my fears.
Reflecting on my life.
Reassuring
And sympathetic
Nurses.
Knowing I am in safe hands.
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Tim Turner shares historic mystery objects at a Living Well Session
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Living Well patients transported to Anglesey Abbey at the Hospice
Learn more about Anglesey Abbey in Cambridgeshire