Abstract
An elderly woman in her early nineties tended to stay in bed after being stricken with heart disease. Her self-image was as "a homemaker and tanka poet". She was encouraged by an occupational therapist to compose the short Japanese poems known as tanka. After she began to compose tanka, she became aware of changes in her environment. She approached her image. And she changed into the person who lives regularly. She left the hospital and was lived alone but with the assistance of helpers and family. This gave her a sense of freedom. The occupational therapist supported her as a tanka poet. This support was an indispensable part of the changes. This case matched the process "doing, being, becoming, belonging" by Wilcock. And it showed that very old person got health by engaging meaningful occupation.
