Residents of Edenholme Care Home in Stonehaven have published their own poetry book, which was penned throughout lockdown.
Starting as a way to voice their thoughts and feelings surrounding the pandemic, the group have now had their poems gathered together into a short volume.
Hosted and supported by Aberdeenshire Council’s Community Learning and Development Team (CLD), in particular Ed Garrett and Alistair Lawrie, many of the residents took quickly to writing the anthology poems.
Ed Garrett said: “Finding myself redeployed to Edenholme at the beginning of the pandemic, I initially asked the residents what activities they would like to do.
“There was very little contact for the residents with the outside world at the time, and we came up with the idea of a poetry group amongst other activities.
“This weekly group, supported by the incredible staff at home, quickly became popular as a way for residents to get together, be creative and have some fun, and share memories and favourite poems.”
The group met on a Friday and were supported by Mr Garrett and Mr Lawrie to write poetry collaboratively, supporting each other to share their thoughts and feelings by putting pen to paper.
Community Learning and Development Worker, Mr Lawrie, added: “We all have stories to tell, things to say, and the skill to say them powerfully if we give ourselves permission, and that has never been more necessary than during this last year.
“Folk here who felt isolated were able to stay in touch with their own feelings, each other and particularly their memories.
“Writing these poems provided an important outlet for those feelings and has ensured their views are heard outside the Home and indeed nationally. As importantly, the process of writing collectively ensured that all voices were heard, thereby enshrining inclusion at the heart of what was created. Perhaps most important of all was the fun we all had doing it.”
Amanda McRae, care home manager at Edenholme, said: “Having Ed and Alistair from Community Learning and Development and the Live Life Aberdeenshire people, supporting us to care for our residents has been nothing short of a godsend.
“All of the staff that were redeployed to us have been fantastic and have done so much to help residents combat the isolation that has, unfortunately, come with the restrictions.
“The residents who took part in the poetry group got so much out of it, and having a booklet to share their work with friends and families is just fantastic. I really can’t thank Ed and Alistair enough for the hard work and commitment they have shown to the home and, more importantly, to our wonderful residents.”
The production of the anthology booklet was also supported by the Stonehaven Lions with a generous donation to cover the cost of printing and producing the booklet.