Aberdeen Village Community Matters November 2021

Thankful residents NOVEMBER 2021

Remembering to be thankful It can sometimes be difficult to remind ourselves to be thankful, especially when things are happening that we didn’t choose. But it is very important for our own wellbeing and happiness to maintain a positive attitude.

Here are some helpful ways to remind ourselves to be thankful, not only during Thanksgiving, but all year long.

1. Appreciate what you have. “We tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don’t have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.” — Frederick Koenig Whenever you get discouraged about things that are missing from your life, think about all the things that you do have and how thankful you are for them.

2. Keep a gratitude journal. “Previous research has linked gratitude to improved mental health, lower levels of anxiety and improved sleep,” says Blaire Morgan, Ph.D., a research fellow at the University of Birmingham in England. “Our own research has demonstrated a strong link between gratitude and three different measures of well-being: satisfaction with life, subjective happiness and positive affect.”

The idea of a gratitude journal is nice because not only does it start training you to think in terms of what you are thankful for, somehow putting pen to paper helps solidify this way of thinking. You can also go back and reread things you have written, and after a while you’ll realize you have many things to be thankful for!

3. Focus on being grateful. “Learn to be thankful for what you already have, while you pursue all that you want.” Jim Rohn believed one of the greatest

Thankful – continued on page 3

In honor of Thanksgiving, our residents reflected on what they are most thankful for.

June Hackathorn: “I am most thankful for family and Aberdeen Village friends.”

Jan Kelly: “I am most thankful for my wonderful family and friends here at Aberdeen Village.”

Evelyn Bergmann: “I am most thankful for a comfortable place to live and Zoom internet to see my ‘away’ children.”

Nancy Schulz: “I am most thankful for being a forgiven and bred child of God and my family, past and present!”

Gerry Ray: “I am most thankful for my family, a safe place to live and friends.”

Shari Rolph: “I am most thankful for my family.”

Janet Elliott: “I am most thankful for good health, friends, a loving family, grandchildren, a loving God and good memories.”

Zoe Moore: “I am most thankful for family, friends and faith. This year I must add how especially thankful I am to be home after my long bout with COVID.” Darla Thompson: “I am most thankful that I am living in independent living at Aberdeen Village and that my immediate family is living here in Kansas.”

Oleta Garvic: “I am most thankful for the grace of God and a Christian husband and for Christian grandparents that raised me from the time I was 6 months old. I am thankful for my health. I am thankful for Christian friends and my son and Residents – continued on page 4

Get the latest on visitation and COVID-19 at our campus at AberdeenVillage.com/covid-19.

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Developing a line toward perfection When she saw a photograph of a deeply wooded and unfamiliar place and remembered the conversations she’d had with her husband, Carl, the story she would put to paper became clear.

“I’m in a group where photographers provide photos for artists to use as reference,” Carol said. “I saw that one, and it hit home emotionally. When you’re left by yourself, when you’ve been together for 57 years, it’s kind of scary.”

Carol Rondinelli says a conversation she had with her late husband, Carl, about a teddy bear and a photograph of an uninviting wood inspired the piece. “When you’re left by yourself, when you’ve been together for 57 years, it’s kind of scary,” she says.

It took Carol Rondinelli about 30 hours to sketch out her best-of-show piece, “Just Me and Teddy in a Strange New World,” but the story behind the work and the reasons why she drew it developed over a lifetime.

“My husband died three years ago,” Carol said. “He knew he was dying, and we talked about it. We had this big teddy bear in the closet. I told him if you go first, you know who will replace you? That teddy bear.”

In Carol’s masterful drawing, the foreboding denseness of the unknown woods ahead seem less frightening because of the warmth of the teddy bear held in a girl’s hand.

“I wanted the bear to stand out,” Carol said.

It did — as did the piece — which won the best in show, professional division, in the annual Art is Ageless® competition.

Carol has been studying and crafting artwork for more than 40 years. Until recently, she taught a weekly art class at Aberdeen Village.

In the 1980s, she took classes from nationally recognized artists such as Robert Gunn, who won a cover painting contest for the Saturday Evening Post and was chosen to do a

“Just Me and Teddy in a Strange World” was the Best of Show Professional Winner in the system-wide Art is Ageless® competition.

portrait of former President Jimmy Carter. Later, she trained under Lee Hammond, who has written more than 30 art instructional books.

“I was in a bookstore, and I turned around there she was,” Carol said of Hammond, who was a longtime resident of Leawood. “I took colored pencil from her weekly with my daughter. It was social, but we were still learning. I took lessons from her for 17 years.”

That’s where her career in teaching

Perfection – continued on page 3

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COMMUNITY MATTERS | November 2021

is published monthly for residents and friends of Aberdeen Village

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Perfection – continued from page 2 began: first instructing young students out of her home, and later to a regularly scheduled class at Aberdeen Village.

“I had a friend who worked at another retirement center, so I went out and asked if they’d like some volunteer work. I had only taught neighborhood kids to that point,” Carol said. “I had been to Aberdeen before and thought it was beautiful.

I got it in my head that I might go there and apply for a job. So I went and met with the director of activities, and she said they had wanted a class for a long time. We shook hands, and she said she loved the idea. That was in 2012. I was in my ninth year of teaching there before COVID struck.”

She also taught a class at her church,

called “Something for Saturday.” It was created for people like her who were dealing with the loss of a spouse.

“One morning after my husband passed, I got excited, and I hadn’t been excited for a long time,” Carol said. “I thought there must be more people like me out there. The weekends were hard to get through, so I worked with the local grief group and started a Saturday group for widows and widowers. The people really appreciated it. They would talk about the struggles they were having. We started with three, and in a year had it to 15 and a waiting list. I felt like I was really helping somebody.”

Carol said she began dating Carl in high school. They had two daughters and four grandchildren over the course of their life together.

When Carl passed, the Aberdeen Village class went out of its way to make her feel loved.

“I love that generation,” Carol said.

“The entire class jumped on a bus and came to the service. When I came into class, they all stood up and clapped for me.”

In addition to the best of show piece, the Art is Ageless judges also recognized Carol’s talent for her entry “Kansas Girl,” which is a drawing of an up-close view of a sunflower.

“I’m kind of narrow-minded and go down the path of detail and realism,” Carol said of her work. “I’ve always been an organized person. I’m the kind of person who goes around and straightens pictures and pushes chairs up to the table. I sort of just like things neat.” ◆

Thankful – continued from page 1 lessons in life we can learn is to be thankful for what we already have.

But gratitude is something we have to work at — to prepare our hearts to be reflective and thankful and to provide room for contemplation of our good fortune.

If we want to be the kind of people who are characterized by thankfulness, by gratitude, then we must make sure that we focus on it at all times.

4. Have an attitude of gratitude.

Are you a grateful person? Thankful for the good things — big and small — in your life?

In the hustle of life, sometimes it’s

easy to forget that every day holds precious gifts. From the air we breathe to the friendships we hold close, there is always something to be thankful for.

With the season of thanksgiving upon us, try to retrain your brain to think of moments throughout your day that you are thankful for.

5. Get in the feeling-good habit.

Every night as you’re getting ready to go to bed, spend a few minutes thinking of all the things that you were grateful for during that day.

This is especially important when you’ve had a bad day and it seems as though there is nothing to give thanks for.

This can take work, especially when negative emotions are getting the best of you, but this is important.

Sometimes you must push yourself. Maybe you had a few laughs with a friend or maybe you received a compliment. Or maybe you did something nice for someone, or someone did something nice for you and it lifted your spirits. It can be as small as a snack you enjoyed or a good seat you snagged. Believe us, you’ll come to find that it’s well worth the effort because you will be creating an attitude of gratitude, a habit that’s conducive to making you feel good. ◆

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Residents – continued from page 1 daughter and my four grandchildren and five greatgrandchildren. I’m thankful for my country whose motto is ‘In God we trust.’”

Eva Murphy: “I am most thankful for this wonderful world, caring people and all God’s gifts.”

Mary Wilmoth: “I am most thankful that God has blessed me with a wonderful family of five awesome children, which now has grown to five generations with another great-great on the way. We have cherished many family Thanksgiving gatherings throughout 67 years. The BLESSINGS keep MULTIPLYING!” Don Spriggs: “I am most thankful first for the Lord Jesus and for Friday 4 p.m. social time.”

Judy Salts: “I am most thankful for the staff at Aberdeen Village.

I understand that this is a difficult time for everyone, but I believe our staff is working hard to please all residents. Thanks for the hard work.”

Alice Erwin: “I am most thankful that I was born in the USA with all the freedom God has allowed us to have. Also for my parents and 4 siblings who loved each other and looked out for each other. Now that I am 90 years old and enjoying living at Aberdeen with 2 of my 3 children 15 minutes away I have been blessed and I’m thankful.” ◆

17500 W. 119th St.

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COMMUNITY MATTERS | November 2021

Olathe, KS 66061-9524