Starting the day with a chat and coffee. The chat started late today. I started reflecting on the learning curve. I received tips from a conversation I had with a caregiver. While things are different, these tips helped me move through the learning curve of being an effective caregiver in 2019.
2021 Set up a Christmas Tree Husband
So emotionally difficult getting on Facebook anymore, but I’m glad I have the memories. 7.14.22
Facebook Memories“We hope you enjoy looking back and sharing your memories on Facebook, from the most recent to those long ago.”
Mom had an appointment at the nail salon. Dad decided to join in since it has become more difficult to cut his own.
I purposely added photos each day, not to my Facebook page, but to my Caregiving portfolio. I cherished each moment with Mom and Dad while caring for them. Our routine days became part of my photo journal (diary) and extraordinary days and disconcerting events. It helped me remember what happened, when, and where, and the emotions or thoughts of the day. As Mom and Dad found it harder to remember what happened the day before, I knew that day would arrive for all of us, and I wanted something to refer to. I am so appreciative and thankful for the benefits I have received daily.
On this day, Dad began to talk about his experiences in the army 76 years earlier. He soon wrote about it in his column for the weekly paper. I began to sense this was an important part of his life as he related those experiences to us. I found pictures, and then the stories emerged about how he met Mom and how she waited for him until he returned from the service. Dad had the pictures, and because he was a journalist, I have found boxes and albums of pictures for the columns he wrote and pictures of our family.
Searching through those photos as I unpack, I have found some I never knew he had. Pictures I never saw, and the memories came flooding back. I love my parents and am ever so grateful for the time I spent with them during the latter part of their lives. I gave back to them what they had given me all those years.
Sunsets in Denver City (1972) 
June 18, 2022. I am not stressed anymore. A calm peace has descended on me. My prayers have been answered😊
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