Family love, support, and sharing

Easy Living December 1, 2020 Article: You Are a Great Daughter and These Examples Prove It!

You Are a Great Daughter and These Examples Prove It! – Aging Parents (easylivingfl.com)

My family, like most families, is struggling with how to navigate the upcoming holidays.  There’s so much conflict within each of us between what we WANT to do and what we NEED to do, not only to be safe within our family, but to be responsible citizens of our neighborhood, our state, our country, and our world. 

I feel confident that we will work it out because–not only do I have a great daughter, but I have two—and in addition, I have a great son and a great daughter-in-law.  The sons-in-law prefer to navigate around the edges.

Between the four of them, they pretty much cover all the bases on the Easy Living list that follows. The list is basically a good start because as they state: “This list could go on and on. It is not the same in all families. Parents show their love in different ways, as do their children. Your dynamics might be different. You can be a great daughter and do none of these things. And, sometimes you’ll do them while at other times you won’t be able to.”

1. You call your Mom to check in on her.
2. You call her just to say hi. Or, you call to ask her for advice.
3. You tell your parents you love them.
4. You cook meals, grocery shop for them, or send them meals.
5. You respect your parents’ wishes or statements that they don’t need help.
6. You’re there if they do.
7. You listen.
8. You share happy memories with them.
9. You send Mom a text or note to let her know you’re thinking about her.
10. You teach your kids Mom’s best recipe.
11. You share stories about your parents with your kids.
12. You investigate resources that might help…even if they’re not ready for them yet.
13. You read a lot of articles about aging and senior health or study up on Mom’s health issue.
14. Your parents talk about you proudly to their friends.
15. Mom calls you for input. Or, calls you just to talk.
16. Dad asks you to help him figure out his Medicare plan.
17. They love coming out to see your kids’ games or performances, or just hearing about how they’re doing.
18. They ask you how you’re doing, they still worry about you too.
19. They tell you stories and share bits of wisdom.
20. They send you notes or clip articles they think will interest you.

Make it a game!

• Make additions to the list
• Each player in turn, reads one item from the list out loud.
• Each player writes the name of the family member who is best-described by the statement.
• The family member named most for the statement gets one point for each time he or she is named.
• Use the exercise as a conversation starter.