Thankful Monday--March 13, 2017

I am thankful for 

nursing home workers.

My mother was once a very talented
nursing home worker. Now she is
benefiting from others with the
same calling, some of whom she trained.

Working in a nursing home takes a special kind of person. The work is draining both physically and emotionally. I am reminded of this each time I visit my mother.

My mother has a great place to live. The facility is small and has a good staff who really seem to care. Working with the elderly is their calling. During a recent visit with my mother, this was very evident.

For example, one evening at supper, I saw a worker, Pauline, meet the needs of several in rapid succession. First she got "insulated" silverware for Edna who was convinced that electricity was coming out of everything. Next she helped Sara who had eaten too much and was ready to vomit at the table. Then she watered a plant for Rita because Rita wouldn't eat until she knew that the plant had been properly watered. After all of that, Sarah moved onto Imogene who was not able to feed herself. All of this was done with a smile and a kind word for everyone.

So for Pauline and others who use their special talents to care for those in nursing homes, I am very thankful.

Moving perspective

My mother was a busy woman.

While visiting my mother, I found a piece of paper on which my mother had hand-written some lists of various events in her adult life. She had lists of addresses where she had lived, places she had worked, etc. There were details that I wasn't familiar with like house numbers, but basically none of it was new information--meaning I had heard about these things before. However, I thought I should record the details in a more permanent way, so I typed them up and promptly emailed them to my sisters.

And a funny thing happened while typing up these lists.  My mother's life came alive to me in a whole new way.  Various things that I had heard of separately here and there, got combined into a big picture. Here's a sample:

1950   Graduated nursing school
1950   Married
1950   Moved, P'burg,12th St.
1951   Moved, P'burg, Walnut St.
1951-53 Husband away in Army
1951-53 Moved, P'burg, 18th St.
1951   Daughter #1 born
1953-56 Moved to E'burg, Mill St.
1953   Sister died
1953   Grandfather died
1954   Daughter #2 born
1956-57  Moved to M'town, Church St.
1957-60  Moved to Penn'burg, Eisenhower Ave.
1957   Daughter #3 born
1960   Moved to Tann'town, Hart St.
1960   Moved in Tann'town, Hart St. in different house
1961   Daughter # 4 born

So in case you didn't study the list, let me summarize it for you. In a little over ten years, my mother moved 8 times in 5 different towns, had 4 kids, and lost two very important people in her life. Also, her husband was gone during the Korean War for two years.

That got me thinking about the current move I'm involved in. I'm not doing it with colicky babies, a husband in the Army, or on a shoestring budget. I'm doing it with my spouse at home, grown children, and good resources. So that perspective should help me calm down a little about the current move I'm involved in. Right?

You'd think so, but I'm still going crazy here with moving details. However, it did give me more respect and admiration for the remarkable woman who is my mother.

Thankful Sunday--July 20, 2014

I am thankful for my mother and her patience. 

Many years ago, my mother gave birth to me on this day after waiting patiently three weeks after her due date for me to arrive. Then she waited patiently for 6 more months for me to stop crying night and day. For her and patient mothers everywhere, I am thankful.