Posts

Invisible Connection

/4 Comments/Posted in: /by /Reading Time: 4 minutes

(Time Period: Throughout Mom’s time in the care home.)

A Lesson in Mindfulness

When it is no longer possible to communicate with our loved ones the way we used to, how does connection occur? It was natural to wonder about Mom’s ability to connect with us. Was she understanding what we were saying? Was she feeling comforted by our presence? The answers to these questions were not always apparent. This led me to realize there was something else to explore: my own ability to connect with her. Read more

Themes That Move You

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The Best Prayers Are One-Liners

In my prior post, Open To What Is Next, I relayed the time my father spoke words to me that also seemed to be his prayer: I’m in your hands. I stated that some of the best prayers are one-liners and when expressed are often spontaneous and raw. Read more

Open To What Is Next

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Dad’s Words to Me

In the last year of my father’s life, it was necessary for him to have minor surgeries every few months. He rolled with these and recovered each time, able to enjoy the year with my mother in their new community where she was beginning to receive assisted living support. At this point, she was in the earlier stages of Alzheimer’s and they were able to participate in various social activities ranging from chair yoga to a singing group to dinners with new friends. Read more

How Are We Going To Do This?

/2 Comments/Posted in: /by /Reading Time: 3 minutes

(Time Period: Two days after moving my parents to Arizona, in a relative early phase of Mom’s progression with Alzheimer’s.)

Bedtime

It was 10:00 p.m. Dad was downstairs watching TV and Jess and I had just gotten into bed. Light from the guest bathroom down the hall was streaming through the small window above our bedroom door. Mom was getting ready for bed but it had been a while and Jess suggested that I check on her. Read more