Sometimes I like to come to the café late at night when no one else is here and listen to some of my favorite CDs. Last night I curled up in the oversized chair in the far corner and listened  to Elton John and Tim Rice’s haunting song “Circle of Life” from The Lion King. As I wrapped the soothing comfort of the night around me like a velvet blanket, I realized that Rice’s lyrics could have been written for us, we unheralded family caregivers who “never take more than we give.”  

Each of us handle our caregiver role so very differently; and deep down we know that  there is no one magic formula for doing it right (although we wish there were).

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When Mom was going through her Alzheimer’s years, I decided to go to grief counseling…one of the smartest things I have ever done. One of the sessions was devoted to asking how my feelings about caregiving compared with those of my sisters...

I learned I was blessed and in the vast minority. My sisters and I never disagreed on one issue that came up. My grief counselor exclaimed how unique that was. She then proceeded to tell me about actual fist fights she had in her office between siblings and their difference of opinions.

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