This category speaks to matters especially important to caregivers–family members and perhaps professional caregivers–who help make life full for older adults. If nothing else, this category is one way of saying thanks!
In yesterday’s entry I shared some of my memories of childhood Christmas celebrations and traditions. Today I’d like to think alongside you about engaging in similar recollections with your beloved elders—one way to bring them the gift of your presence! As I was assembling yesterday’s thoughts, I started to wonder how you and I could engage our beloved elders in satisfying conversations aboutMORE...
If you’re caring for an aging parent, it’s possible to experience a special kind of loneliness. This is soulful work that you might do alone. Today I want to explore some of what that might mean for you. To encourage you, to remind you that you’re not alone and to help you find some comfort in your loving attention of a loved one. First, this loneliness—however it’s described—is very real for youMORE...
Along my career path, I’ve participated in several exit interviews—final conversations with my bosses about any number of matters regarding my past and future work. With my supervisor, I could review the final details of my separation; learn important information that might be useful for the next steps in my life and receive affirmations about my past service along with best wishes for my futureMORE...
The lessons I learn from being among nature’s small and large wonders have formed the basis a series of blogs that I just completed. (To visit unread blogs in the series, type “Lessons from the natural world” into the Search feature on the site.) Today I provide a little background for the series—the compelling reasons for its genesis. I’m a naturalist. Not because of training or occupationalMORE...
In these later decades of life, I have come to see even more fully the value of being immersed in the natural world. The lessons I learn from among nature’s small and large wonders form the basis for this series of blogs. In this final entry in the series, I explore some practical ways for caregivers to bring older adults together with the natural world. Since interactions with nature can beMORE...
I want to speak with those of you who are caring for elderly loved ones, perhaps finding it more difficult than you imagined. Not to give you advice—you probably get enough of that already—or to provide you with more information—you may be overwhelmed with that, too. Instead, let me share with you my own experiences with frail elderly folks—including my mother—as one way of telling youMORE...
For several years I’ve been working with an occupational therapist on the question: How could spirituality re-emerge as a vital part of this profession? This entry examines one part of that search: How might chronic illness diminish a person’s spiritual self? (Also implied: How might spirituality help diminish the debilitating circumstances of a chronic illness or disability?) SomeMORE...
This entry presents another perspective on a perhaps-puzzling later-in-life matter: Those older folks whose apparel and personal appearance may seem frozen in time. First, the phenomenon—one you may observe in others OR a way of life you’re starting to adopt: Patterns of clothing, shoes, grooming, jewelry or accessories that might suggest that they or you may have stopped caring aboutMORE...
Previously I shared some thoughts about describing responsibilities as caregivers anticipate the needs of their frail elderly parents. In this entry, I approach the same question, this time from the viewpoint of an older adult who wants to invite adult children—or other caregivers—into a beginning conversation about my possible needs. The following personal observations and experiences come toMORE...
As you anticipate caring for a frail elderly person—or seeking care yourself—it may be wise to ask (and answer) the simple question, “Who will be in charge?” It makes sense to address this matter as part of elder care conversations now. Events in my life over the past two decades have sharpened that question and broadened possible answers. Consider this invitation to join in a two-partMORE...
BOB SITZE has filled the many years of his lifework in diverse settings around the United States. His calling has included careers as a teacher/principal, church musician, writer/author, denominational executive staff member and meat worker. Bob lives in Wheaton, IL.