Anthology gives people with dementia the gift of reading

Come Sit Awhile is a wonderful anthology of dementia-friendly stories. It is accessible to people with dementia as the stories are short, printed in large font, and easy to follow.

The book allows the person to enjoy reading without the fatigue or overwhelm that can come with reading larger texts such as novels.

The subjects of the stories are also chosen with care. They are full of evocative imagery, nostalgic notes, and memories common to many of the readers.

By reading Come Sit Awhile, the person is engaging with content that encourages memory recall. Such cognitive stimulation can help people remember and, at very least, fill in the space for a chat with a loved one, nurse or carer.

It can be difficult to start up a conversation with someone with dementia. People are often cautious and fearful not to upset or confuse them by bringing up something they don’t recall. This book is an incredible tool for empowering both of you in exactly that scenario.

The power of words to capture a feeling or create vibrant pictures in our mind’s eye is miraculous, and the reason why so many of us read. This book enables aging people in our communities to keep that very gift of reading in their lives.

National Public Libraries Day takes place on September 28 and, as well as celebrating our libraries, it is an opportunity to take a closer look at their work and what’s available to us.

Beyond providing books, libraries in Ireland are community spaces that have a multitude of services and resources on offer. They are for everyone in our communities, all the way from pre-natal babies to older people with dementia, and this book is an example of how Cork County Library and Arts Services are putting in an exceptional effort to ensure everybody is included.

Not only is Come Sit Awhile a collection that people in the early stages of dementia can read themselves, it’s also one that others can read to them.

Its vivid stories are beautiful when read out loud, many of which evoke fond memories from our pasts.

In the words of Schull-based E.R. Murray, author of Caramel Hearts and the Nine Lives Trilogy: The Come Sit Awhile anthology is a great resource for sharing; the stories are concise and relatable, they create a moment of calm when read aloud, and they provide the perfect starting point for discussion.’”

As well as being an author, Murray is also one of the professional artists on the Arts for Health Partnership Programme team in West Cork, providing workshops in healthcare settings.

“In this role, I aim to create a welcoming space in which people feel confident to have a voice and share their own stories and creativity – and I found the Come Sit Awhile anthology a useful resource,” she said.

E.R. Murray has certainly found the anthology to be a valuable aid in a variety of capacities. For example, she supports 4th year students in visiting their local nursing homes and has noticed that often young people can be nervous or unsure of how to begin conversing with elderly people.

She said: “I also witnessed Transition Year students visiting community hospitals use the anthology as a way to connect with older generations and engage in meaningful conversation.”

Come Sit Awhile has been so successful and beneficial to communities that the Cork County Council Library and Arts Services felt the need to create a second volume. This edition comes four years after the original publication in 2021.

As E.R. Murray concluded: “I was delighted to be asked to contribute to the latest edition, and I’m proud to play a part.”

The new book is part of Cork County Council Library’s Age-Friendly programme. The Cork County Council Library and Arts Services ran a competition with writers from across the county sending in their submissions. The final selection of mainly amateur writers is an incredible testament to the talent in Cork.

It is a fine collection of stories, poems and images created with and for those living with dementia - as well as their families, carers and friends.

Our libraries have curated this book with the hope of igniting reminiscence, reflection and shared laughter. It is a celebration of creativity, connection and community.

Other ways in which the library service in Cork county has developed its services for an ageing population include digital opportunities, shared reading, dementia awareness training, age-friendly chairs, trollies, mobile library visits to nursing homes, large print books, access to audio and e-audio books, new buildings with better access, and age-friendly champions in their libraries.

Most notably, the service offers the free and welcoming space that each library provides.

Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr Mary Linehan Foley, highlighted the importance of inclusive initiatives and provisions, saying: “Our libraries help our communities by providing access to information and resources for those suffering with dementia as well as their families and carers.

“Reading and reminiscing also brings a huge amount of comfort to those with dementia.”

She also noted how useful this book has been to the public, saying that the first volume of Come Sit Awhile was very well received by those in the community, carers and medical professionals.

“I’m certain this new volume will be just as well received.”

I was delighted to have attended the launch of Come Sit Awhile during the West Cork Literary Festival in Bantry. It was an honour to hear a selected three contributors read their stories in the anthology out loud.

Firstly, Clare Bohane read a story titled A Day In May, and Kathleen Lonergan came in second place with Returning Home. Finally, Olivia Coogan took to the stand with Afternoon Tea Party.

Kate Durant, Eamon O’Leary and Paddy O’Connor were highly commended, and their stories are also included.

They regaled the crowd with tales of tea parties to celebrate Mother’s Days, bright memories of the Irish countryside and childish amazement at colourful, sugar-ridden sweetshops.

I was also grateful to Teresa Bohane, who is an Advanced Nurse Practitioner Dementia with Bantry General Hospital, and Fiona Foley, Senior Project Manager at the HSE’s National Dementia Office, who spoke about the impact of this disease and helped educate the attendees about the realities of dementia.

The ‘Dementia: Understand Together Campaign’ is working to build Dementia Inclusive Communities and the key aims of the initiative are to ensure people are understood, respected and valued, and to enable them to stay socially connected and engage in community life if they wish to do so. This involves accessible environments and local businesses and amenities being responsive to people’s needs.

Come Sit Awhile is an example of an action that tries to give people living with dementia that sense of autonomy.

There are 64,142 people currently living with dementia in Ireland and with an ever aging population, that number is estimated to rise to more than 141,000 people by 2050.

With such stark figures, it is pertinent that we begin to make our services, amenities and businesses more dementia-friendly.

Although there is vital scientific research and developments being made in this area, this disease isn’t going anywhere at this time. If anything, it is set to become more pertinent in our society, so what we can do is make our communities more accessible for those living with and who will be living with dementia.

You can access Volume 2 of Come Sit Awhile through the library network and copies have been made available to nursing homes and day care centres.

Emer O’Brien, the Cork County Librarian, rounded off the collection’s foreword with a lovely invitation I’d like to leave you with, ‘We hope you enjoy this trip down memory lane. Please, come sit a while…’