- first time we set foot on Renci @ Moulmein was on 2nd November 2008
- a tour and time to familiarise ourselves with the atmosphere and surroundings of the place
- had no idea what to expect like how will the elderly react to our presence?, will the activities that we have planned be able to engage them?
- met up with Ms Xie Xiao Yun to guide us around Renci
- we met many nurses and patients
- many patients were lying restlessly in bed due to the afternoon heat
- we smiled sincerely hoping that our little smiles could make their day
- there was a patient who was having a stroll in her wheelchair, a patient happily folding plastic bags into little rectangles for the nurses, and a patient who looks after a little garden in Renci which we were heartened to see that despite having to stay on the hospital grounds 24/7, there are patients who try to make the best out of their stay there.
- we went to ward C1, the ward of female nursing home patients we will be serving for our project.
- ward C1 has around 30 patients of varying races and backgrounds, and some were delighted to see us.


- the activity for our first play therapy session was a singalong session.
- we felt a need to break the ice with the patients there first, it being our first time
- we had a short befriending session, where we try to strike conversations with the elderly and also for them to know about us
- our first obstacle: language barrier. Many of the patients could only speak dialects or Malay. Our Malay team members could communicate with those who speak Malay, but there was some trouble with the dialect speaking patients. We used combinations of little broken Cantonese, Hokkien and Teo Chew to try to talk to the patients.
- we kept going bed to bed to talk to all the patients. We would ask them how their day was, or whether they had eaten or not. We were careful not to touch on topics that could evoke sad emotions in them, such as their family, or why they are there.
- most patients were friendly and responsive
- there were times when conversations came to a dead silence where we no longer knew what to say.
-we ended the awkward silences with sing alongs which they were very enthusiastic about
- songs we sang were popular nursery rhymes: “If You’re Happy”, “It’s A Small World”, “You Are My Sunshine”, and “The More We Get Together” in English, Chinese and Malay
- we would try to engage the elderly by getting them to clap along with the song or encourage them to sing along if they knew the song.


- we also met some visitors, mostly family members, who came to visit the patients
- There was a granddaughter of a patient in her 20s-30s who approached us when she saw us
- She asked if we were volunteers, and encouraged us to visit the patients on a regular basis
- She alsoraised that many young people these days are unaware of these patients who truly need our help
- she encouraged us to publicise about our project to spark off others' interests in doing something similar.
- we were initially quite annoyed as she seemed to be lecturing us but we gave what she said a second thought, and felt what she said was actually quite true.
- we went to Donut Factory at Novena Square nearby to have an impromptu meeting about it, and this is how this blog came about!

♥ PLAY! 5:15 AM