I spoke with a reporter whose family moved onto a block filled with old people. At first her children were disappointed. But the reporter baked banana bread for the neighbors and had her children deliver the bread and visit. Soon, the children had all these new friends with whom they shared food, stories and projects. And the young save the old.
Babies have an amazing power to comfort and heal.
Once I was in a rest home when a visitor showed up with a baby. She was immediately surrounded. Even people who'd seemed comatose woke up to watch the baby. People who hadn't gotten out of bed in a week suddenly were ringing for a wheelchair. A group of residents with infectious illnesses pressed their faces against a window to see the baby.