Reminiscing about the ‘good old days’ sparked more than just joy to LiveBetter customers, Arthur and Fay Weston, as the task of compiling their ‘Life Story’ document for family with their LiveBetter support worker, Ian, turned into a road trip to visit Arthur’s hometown of Mt Larcom. Arthur suffers from memory loss, but bought forward many memories of his formative years while looking through old photos and mentioned his desire to revisit the area where he grew up. It was decided then, that Ian would explore his options as Arthur’s support worker to organise a visit to Mt Larcom.
Reminiscing is especially helpful for seniors living with a memory condition like dementia or Alzheimer’s.
This can take the form of remembering past experiences through sight, sound, taste, touch or smell. For these seniors, reminiscing has been found to improve overall quality of life, by boosting mood, reducing stress and offers a new way to connect and communicate with others.
On a brisk Monday morning, Ian, Arthur and Fay set off on the 123km road trip from Zilzie to Mt Larcom. Not having any current connections in the area, the plan was to ask locals if they could help locate the dairy farm that Arthur grew up on. Once they arrived, they sat down to enjoy a morning tea lovingly prepared by Fay, before exploring some shops nearby to connect with some locals. The Mt Larcom community was more than willing to help, even going to the effort of phoning friends and acquaintances to gather information.
They eventually located the site of a school Arthur attended, then known as East End State School, but the schoolhouse had been moved years previously. After travelling a few kilometres through the beautiful countryside, Ian, Arthur and Fay eventually tracked down the man that purchased the dairy farm from Arthur’s parents. The man was happy to help, and even organised a walk-through tour of the house where Arthur spent his childhood.
Arthur and Fay thoroughly enjoyed their day exploring Arthur’s history. Everything changes over time and memories fade, but thanks to the Mt Larcom community and their willingness to help, Arthur was able to take an emotional and heartwarming trip down memory lane.
