I know that I tend to underestimate others: their loyalty, their ability to change, their resilience and willingness to persevere. Although I don’t trust easily, because I don’t want to be hurt, I do hope and am often surprised by people’s kindness and and generosity.
This small bush had grown quite large until it was cut to the bone a couple of years ago to provide easier access for some urgent masonry repairs. I reassured my son that it would grow again and I hoped that it would. However, part of me was not at all sure that it would be resilient enough to start again, but it has! Nature perseveres as much as it can and teaches us to not give up. – Maria
Today is National Caregivers Day in Canada. It is a day to pause and acknowledge the fundamentally important work being done by people, young, old and in-between, throughout this country and around the world. They are caring for spouses, parents, children, siblings and neighbours. They are doing their best, often while taking care of their own family and trying to earn a living, to provide various kinds of practical support: cooking, cleaning, driving, banking – as much as can be done. Most of all, they provide hope, comfort, a link to the outside world, a kind hand and voice.
I have been taking care of our mother in her home since 2020, with some help from my siblings, especially my sister, Cris, the other half of the shineandrise.com. Lately, as my sister and I are getting more and more exhausted, we are able to count on the practical assistance of some wonderful, kind, personal support workers to help with our mother’s care when we are not there.Back in 2020, I wrote this reflection as a challenge to prove to myself that I could. A blue slip in one of the religious magazines my mother receives asked readers to write about their pandemic experience. The following is what I wrote with some slight changes and some photos and links added.
If you are, have been, or anticipate that you will be a caregiver, I hope you enjoy this reflection, which first appeared in mariasmind.com.
When my kids were young, I would wake them up by cheerfully yelling out, "Rise and shine. Shine and rise." Wake up. Say hi to the world. Be your best self. We want to say "hi" to everyone and bring you the honest, complicated, best of ourselves: the good, the bad, the difficult, and, of course, Frank Sinatra! Follow along.
