In a cheerful tune, I hear the residents of the memory care unit singing, “Puff, the magic dragon / Lived by the sea / And frolicked in the autumn mist / In a land called Honali,” as it chimes on the jukebox this afternoon.
I'm sitting next to one of the residents, Pearl, and as soon as the song ends we begin making small talk with each other.
“What are you going to school for?” Pearl asks.
“I'm attending school to become a physician assistant,” I say.
Pearl probes further: “Do you think you will ever become a doctor?”
“Actually, physician assistants study medicine on a separate track from doctors. We learn to diagnose and treat patients, but we aren't called doctors, because we haven't gone to medical school.”
Pearl nods her head in understanding. Three minutes go by. Then, Pearl asks, “What are you going to school for?”
Maybe my explanation wasn't clear enough, I surmise. I explained it again: “Physician assistants study medicine on a separate track from doctors. We learn to diagnose and treat patients, but we aren't called doctors, because we haven't gone to medical school.”
Once more Pearl nods her head in understanding. A minute or two later, she asks, “So, what are you going to school for?”
I look into her eyes, the eyes of innocence and genuine curiosity. I search them for a hint of understanding but find none.
In the next 20 minutes, Pearl asks me the same set of questions four more times.
I reason that it may be better if I ask about her life. I inquire, “Do you have any children?”
Pearl is lost deep in thought for a few seconds, and then with an attitude of defeat shrugs her shoulders and says, “I don't know.”
A surge of empathy and embarrassment comes over me for raising this topic.
A nurse eavesdropping nearby says, “Pearl, you have two sons, Chad and Joseph; they come by every Sunday.”
The corners of Pearl's mouth turn up into a small smile, and after a brief pause, she probes, “Are they nice?”
The nurse replies, “Yes, they are very nice and complete gentlemen.”
Pearl says nothing, but a wave of relief promptly washes over her body.
