We’re sorry that we’ve missed getting our newsletter out to you for the last few weeks. Here’s why it happened. We’re sure that you’ll understand.
We’ve been dealing with Roger’s mother’s declining health since December 23rd. It’s been a tough ‘go’ for her and the family. Our situation isn’t unique – it has happened or will happen to all of us, in one way or another. We had the experience of coping with the death of Lianne’s parents nearly nine years ago. They died six days apart. That’s a very unusual situation and that’s another story. You’d think that such experience would prepare you to some degree for the parents who are left.
Well, you’d be wrong. Roger’s mother has led a vibrant life for over 90 years. She’s finding it tough being on the road to decline in such an abrupt way. It’s also a shocker to everyone in the family. Different families handle these kinds of situations in different ways. Not all coping strategies are good ones and folks do the best that they can.
The experience with Roger’s mother has made us VERY aware of the importance of a ‘team approach’ within the family as well as with the doctors. We have experienced some excellent doctors and also some who talk the ‘team’ talk but then don’t follow through. It takes a lot more work to make good things happen for your loved one if the doctors don’t follow through on the ‘plan’ that has been agreed upon.
In the future, we hope to pull together a series of articles to help anyone who is facing these kinds of challenges. But in the meantime we want to personally recommend an amazing book called “Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant” illustrated and written by Roz Chast. She is a cartoonist who is regularly published in The New Yorker Magazine.
This book is filled with Heart, Humour and Humanity. We know that you will Laugh, Tear Up and Be Touched by her very personal story of dealing with her aging parents. It will give you insights that will be valuable if you are dealing with this kind of situation now or will be in the future. If you have already been down that road – this book will hopefully validate the struggles and the benefits of your journey.
We are sharing a full page panel from a Sketchbook link of the book – to give you an idea of its very unique format. Take a look and you will find further links below that for more information and how to purchase the book. (Please note that we receive no remuneration for any purchases).
If you’re interested in reading a review about the book – click here to check out the review from The New York Times.
Click here for the Amazon link to see more from the inside of the book, as well as details for purchasing the book.
If you have any advice or stories to share with the fans of our newsletter – please comment below. We can all benefit from hearing advice and thoughts of others who have traveled this road. We look forward to hearing from you. Please pass this post on to anyone you know that may benefit from it. Thanks so much!
