When we start to deal with parents that are aging, we often start to examine our lives together.
For most of us a natural part of the cycle of life is when our roles as children start to shift into care taking roles where out parents are concerned. This can be moving a parent into a retirement home, or realizing its necessary to check in with them more often than usual.
Whatever the case, this change is momentous as it signals a time of confronting our own mortality as we confront that of our parents. In addition, it can bring up issues about how well they cared for us when we were young.
We may also find fear at the thought of losing them, even if we’ve been on our own for a very long time. When we can embrace all that they bring into our lives, we may be grateful for all we have learned from them and have to learn.
Grandparents Discover Photo Booth
Families can contain an interesting grouping of personalities. As people marry into families and have children, even more personalities enter the picture. There may be some people that we would not choose to be related to, but that’s what friends are for.
Talking to other friends and family is a source of support. They can help us look at both the unresolved past and the unfolding present, and we are free to talk only about ourselves. Sometimes we need the kind of undivided attention a friend can offer in order to deal with the issues that come up at this time of our lives.
In many ways, this time of life signals a rebirth as we examine our individual past, as well as our family. As our parents lives move toward completion, we are able to see what they did with their time on earth, what we have done so far with our time, and what we might want to do with the time we have left.
These challenges and blessings are all part of the cycle of life.
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