As we here at Hillside are all following the "Stay Home, Stay Safe" policy during this Pandemic and our building is still closed to visitors, we were looking for reasons to get out of our apartments—especially on Easter. One resident saw on our local news about residents living on 8th Street in Traverse City who every night at 8 p.m. would all gather on their front lawns and play music. They were playing a variety of instruments, from horns, ukuleles, tambourines and even banging pots and pans together. They showed a picture of a gentleman in a wheelchair sitting in front of his house with a big smile on his face and ringing bells. The newscaster reported that this had spread to neighbors on 9th and 10th Streets also. So we thought we would try that here at Hillside.
So, at 3 p.m. on Easter, we all came out of our apartments and stood in our doorways. There were residents playing harmonicas, drums, rattles, ringing bells, and lots of pots and pans being banged together or played using a large spoon. Someone had a huge cow bell and was ringing that. This "joyful noise" reverberated through the halls of our apartment building and everyone was smiling and laughing.
After this "joyful noise symphony," we had Cookies and Easter Stones in our Lobby. One of our residents had gathered stones from Little Traverse Bay and hand-painted uplifting words and/or sayings on each of the stones for all of the residents. The stones were bright yellow or blue and had the words faith, calm, hope, love, Happy Easter, this too shall pass, and other beautiful sayings on them. Residents were invited to come to the Lobby and pick a stone or two, grab a cookie and wish their neighbor a Happy Easter—all while wearing masks and keeping our 6-foot social distance. There were a couple residents dancing in the lobby as some of the residents continued to play their "joyful noise." There was an abundance of smiles and laughter, and for a short time, we forgot there was a Pandemic going on. Sometimes it is the simple things in life that can be the most joyful.
Judy Byrwa
Hillside Resident
