‘One Line A Day’ – How to Write a Lifetime of Memories

Have you ever heard the chitty chat and laughter on a Wednesday afternoon at Mayflower Brighton?

You may think it’s the cheer and joy of Happy Hour, but it is one of our hottest attractions on the Activities Calendar - Reminiscing with Nicole.

Pictured above: Nicole and Pauline. “Every week, l listen to the most wonderful memories. l hope that with the gift of this book, the residents will write their memories down for their families to enjoy. Because after all, memories last a lifetime,” says Nicole

Residents gather over a cup of tea to talk about their lives past and present,

“It’s a wonderful way for our community to get to know each other and talk about their lives,” says Nicole.

Every Wednesday afternoon, the sessions are full of residents eagerly awaiting the questions Nicole has carefully prepared for them.

“Everyone has a story, and l want to hear them all,” says Nicole.

“Memories are one of the greatest things we all have.”

“It’s fascinating how much the residents can remember from as far back as their early childhood,” says Nicole.

The ‘write a memory a day’ concept started after Nicole shared with some friends that it would be wonderful for her class to write their memories down for themselves and their families to enjoy.

“The next week, box after box of these books kept arriving at Mayflower marked ‘Reminiscing Class’,” says Nicole.

Nicole is grateful to her close friends Steven and Michelle Hedge, who bought every copy of this book they could find and so generously donated them.

“Every week, l listen to the most wonderful memories. l hope that with the gift of the ‘One Line A Day: A Five-Year Memory Book’ the residents will write their memories down for their families to enjoy, Because after all, memories last a lifetime,” says Nicole,

Nicole encourages family members to come along and join the class on a Wednesday at 1.30pm.

Pictured above: Nicole, Pauline, Elizabeth and Judy discuss their mother-in-laws and have a few laughs along the way.

The therapeutic benefits of reminiscing

Sharing memories by reminiscing can be very therapeutic, particularly for people living with dementia and those spending time with them.  

Reminiscing helps people to have deeper conversations, connect over shared experiences and emotions, and learn new facts about each other along the way.

People living with dementia often experience more positive feelings and emotions when reminiscing. They can also benefit from talking about more challenging topics, too.

The purposeful use of reminiscence often results in reducing levels of stress, boredom, and agitation.

This helps each person in our care to feel more confident in their abilities and memory and gives them a wonderful opportunity to really chat about what holds true meaning to them.

Pictured above: Lorne deep in thought during the discussion.