Tag Archives: Parent

A Saturday in the Life

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Symbol of Confusion

Symbol of Confusion (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Visiting with the Crow and Big Al yesterday, I once again found myself swirling in a pool of confusion.  A humorous pool of confusion, which kind of makes it bearable.

Let’s start with Big Al’s prescription filling service.  I find it easiest if I drop my father’s empty prescription bottles off at the pharmacy and then go pick them up next time I’m by there, usually the next day, or if urgent, I’ll go back in an hour and get them.

My father would rather call them in himself, which is fine, but he assumes that when he calls them in I am alerted somehow to the time they will be ready, which he does not indicate to the Pharmacist, by the way, and that I will automatically pick them up when he needs them, which he also does not indicate until I’m getting ready to leave for home. 

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Pearls of Wisdom – Starting the Dialogue with your Aging Parents: Subject Gratitude

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The Beauty of Old Age

The Beauty of Old Age (Photo credit: VinothChandar)

Starting the Dialogue with your Aging Parents: Subject Gratitude.

Anyone with aging parents or other family members will get a great deal of support information from the Starting the Dialogue Blog (hey that rhymes).  Anyway, the point is – keeping people positive and grateful is important regardless of age, but age has its ways of trying to squelch the positive and replace it with an aching back, wrinkled skin and sore hips.

I highly recommend this advice as I found it challenging to keep my parents from getting depressed and pessimistic when they were not well recently.  And the affect it had on me was that I too, was getting pretty negative, critical, anxious and depressed.   But positive energy and attitude can conquer all, that’s my firm belief.  Not always EASY, but definitely worth the effort.

Thanks Laura!

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Life is What Happens…

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John Lennon's quote in a Nepalese Bookstore, &...

John Lennon’s quote in a Nepalese Bookstore, “Life is what happens to you when you are busy making other plans.” Boudha, Kathmandu, Nepal (Photo credit: Wonderlane)

Wow, it’s been too too long. Happy week after Easter everyone. As I gear up and put the last edits on ‘A Girl From the Hill, I wanted to send a message out to anyone who is still tuning in – I haven’t forgotten you, so please don’t forget me!The book is in its final stages and will most likely go to publication in late May/early June if all goes well. I have found that the editing process takes forever, and I’m constantly finding things I did wrong and/or want to change. Between tonight and tomorrow I draw the line and just get this suckah out there. Editing OCD is not fun.  But I feel like I’m pushing a baby out of the birth canal, and trying to make every push and pant count.  This from a woman who has only given birth via C-Section.  Perhaps this is why it doesn’t come easily to me?

I have also been spending lot of time with my parents these past few weeks. My mother fell in February and dislocated her shoulder. Thankfully that was the extent of her injuries, except for a very bruised leg. She is amazingly strong and heals so well. It’s been hard for the Crow to clip her wings these past weeks, but she never gives up. I know where my daughter inherits her strength from.

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No Offense Intended, but I will be Strong

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strength

strength (Photo credit: S.H.CHOW)

I have been thinking a lot about ideas for my next blog post. Funny how things fall right into your lap.

This past week has been full. I’ve been editing the book, A Girl from the Hill . After my friend Lisa took the time to edit and proof the manuscript, my mother-in-law has kindly taken a second pass for me. Since I’m self publishing I’m not getting any formal editorial services. But with Lisa and Judy I have more than enough expertise and experience, not to mention heart, to get this book ready. I will sit with my mother tomorrow, hopefully, and start selecting pictures. Then we’re done. Fini.

I have been working on this book nearly every day for the past two years. It started out as a rough idea, and became a journey. I got to have some meaningful conversations with my mother, my sisters, my family. I learned a lot about my mother’s life, things I was too young for, or not even born for, for that matter. I learned how much we are alike, and realized how much I do love her, and myself.

A Girl From the Hill is my first public writing experience. It’s taken me my entire life to get enough confidence and strength to do this.  Saying its a labor of love sounds trite, but all my love for my family and the journeys we’ve all taken is woven into this work.

Writing has provided me with a safe haven from the stress of my daily grind, from a world where I don’t always fit in. I’m like my mom, Auntie Phil, Auntie Alice, and my grandmother Maria. I want people’s happiness more than a person should sometimes. I’m a people pleaser. But I am trying, harder each day, to please myself first. It goes against my grain, but if I don’t do it I’ll get eaten alive, I’m sure of it.

You may notice that some of my posts, my excerpts from the book, are no longer posted. Please know that it’s not because I want people to buy the book when it comes out. While I’d love everyone to buy it in tribute to my mother, a money-making venture this is not. But because I don’t want to offend anyone mentioned in my book, and on this site, I’m taking down any potentially offending words.  And I also must consider editing the book further, so that no feelings are slighted.

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