The
following poem was among the possessions of an aged lady who died in the
geriatric ward of a hospital.
"Crabbit Old
Woman"
What do you see,
what do you see?
Are you thinking, when you look at me-
A crabbit old
woman, not very wise,
Uncertain of habit, with far-away eyes,
Who
dribbles her food and makes no reply
When you say in a loud voice,
I do
wish you'd try.
Who seems not to notice the things that you do
And
forever is loosing a stocking or shoe.
Who, unresisting or not; lets you do
as you will
With bathing and feeding the long day is fill.
Is that what
you're thinking,
Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes,
nurse,
you're looking at me.
I'll tell you who I am as I sit here so still!
As
I rise at your bidding, as I eat at your will.
I'm a small child of 10 with
a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters, who loved one another-
A
young girl of 16 with wings on her feet,
Dreaming that soon now a lover
she'll meet,
A bride soon at 20- my heart gives a leap,
Remembering the
vows that I promised to keep.
At 25 now I have young of my own
Who need
me to build a secure happy home;
A woman of 30, my young now grow fast,
Bound to each other with ties that should last;
At 40, my young sons
have grown and are gone,
But my man's beside me to see I don't mourn;
At 50 once more babies play around my knee,
Again we know children, my
loved one and me.
Dark days are upon me, my husband is dead,
I look at
the future, I shudder with dread,
For my young are all rearing young of
their own.
And I think of the years and the love that I've known;
I'm
an old woman now and nature is cruel-
Tis her jest to make old age look
like a fool.
The body is crumbled, grace and vigor depart,
There is now
a stone where I once had a heart,
But inside this old carcass, a young girl
still dwells,
And now and again my battered heart swells,
I remember
the joy, I remember the pain,
And I'm loving and living life over again.
I think of the years all too few- gone too fast.
And accept the stark
fact that nothing can last-
So open your eyes, nurse, open and see,
Not
a crabbit old woman, look closer-
See Me.
information available as to her name,
when she died or who she was. It is so appropriate for all nursing personnel,
families, volunteers and all who come in contact with the elderly to read. At
times we all lose patience with the elderly. This should help us to have more
sympathy and understanding of all residents.
By: Phyilis
McCormack
A Nurse's reply
"To the 'Crabbit Old
Woman"
What do we see, you ask, what
do we see? Yes, we are thinking when looking at thee! We may seem to be hard
when we hurry and fuss, But there's many of you, and too few of us. We would
like far more time to sit by you and talk, To bath you and feed you and help
you to walk. To hear of your lives and the things you have done; Your
childhood, your husband, your daughter, your son. But time is against us,
there's too much to do -Patients too many, and nurses too few. We grieve when
we see you so sad and alone, With nobody near you, no friends of your own. We
feel all your pain, and know of your fear That nobody cares now your end is so
near. But nurses are people with feelings as well, And when we're together
you'll often hear tell Of the dearest old Gran in the very end bed, And the
lovely old Dad, and the things that he said, We speak with compassion and love,
and feel sad When we think of your lives and the joy that you've had, When the
time has arrived for you to depart, You leave us behind with an ache in our
heart. When you sleep the long sleep, no more worry or care, There are other
old people, and we must be there. So please understand if we hurry and fuss
-There are many of you, And so few of us.
ere and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.
following poem was among the possessions of an aged lady who died in the
geriatric ward of a hospital.
"Crabbit Old
Woman"
What do you see,
what do you see?
Are you thinking, when you look at me-
A crabbit old
woman, not very wise,
Uncertain of habit, with far-away eyes,
Who
dribbles her food and makes no reply
When you say in a loud voice,
I do
wish you'd try.
Who seems not to notice the things that you do
And
forever is loosing a stocking or shoe.
Who, unresisting or not; lets you do
as you will
With bathing and feeding the long day is fill.
Is that what
you're thinking,
Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes,
nurse,
you're looking at me.
I'll tell you who I am as I sit here so still!
As
I rise at your bidding, as I eat at your will.
I'm a small child of 10 with
a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters, who loved one another-
A
young girl of 16 with wings on her feet,
Dreaming that soon now a lover
she'll meet,
A bride soon at 20- my heart gives a leap,
Remembering the
vows that I promised to keep.
At 25 now I have young of my own
Who need
me to build a secure happy home;
A woman of 30, my young now grow fast,
Bound to each other with ties that should last;
At 40, my young sons
have grown and are gone,
But my man's beside me to see I don't mourn;
At 50 once more babies play around my knee,
Again we know children, my
loved one and me.
Dark days are upon me, my husband is dead,
I look at
the future, I shudder with dread,
For my young are all rearing young of
their own.
And I think of the years and the love that I've known;
I'm
an old woman now and nature is cruel-
Tis her jest to make old age look
like a fool.
The body is crumbled, grace and vigor depart,
There is now
a stone where I once had a heart,
But inside this old carcass, a young girl
still dwells,
And now and again my battered heart swells,
I remember
the joy, I remember the pain,
And I'm loving and living life over again.
I think of the years all too few- gone too fast.
And accept the stark
fact that nothing can last-
So open your eyes, nurse, open and see,
Not
a crabbit old woman, look closer-
See Me.
information available as to her name,
when she died or who she was. It is so appropriate for all nursing personnel,
families, volunteers and all who come in contact with the elderly to read. At
times we all lose patience with the elderly. This should help us to have more
sympathy and understanding of all residents.
By: Phyilis
McCormack
A Nurse's reply
"To the 'Crabbit Old
Woman"
What do we see, you ask, what
do we see? Yes, we are thinking when looking at thee! We may seem to be hard
when we hurry and fuss, But there's many of you, and too few of us. We would
like far more time to sit by you and talk, To bath you and feed you and help
you to walk. To hear of your lives and the things you have done; Your
childhood, your husband, your daughter, your son. But time is against us,
there's too much to do -Patients too many, and nurses too few. We grieve when
we see you so sad and alone, With nobody near you, no friends of your own. We
feel all your pain, and know of your fear That nobody cares now your end is so
near. But nurses are people with feelings as well, And when we're together
you'll often hear tell Of the dearest old Gran in the very end bed, And the
lovely old Dad, and the things that he said, We speak with compassion and love,
and feel sad When we think of your lives and the joy that you've had, When the
time has arrived for you to depart, You leave us behind with an ache in our
heart. When you sleep the long sleep, no more worry or care, There are other
old people, and we must be there. So please understand if we hurry and fuss
-There are many of you, And so few of us.
ere and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.
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