11 Jun Still Making Memories
This weekend I was supposed visit my cousin in Texas for her wedding. Given the pandemic, the wedding and our trip was cancelled!!! At first I was too upset to talk about it. Why couldn’t we travel-I was feeling fine? Then my cousins called and asked us to have a dance party using Zoom instead….This summer I’ve been living with my nana and papa, which has shown me the pains of watching loved ones get older. My papa is physically very weak. My grandmother has dementia, which causes her to be extremely forgetful, often forgetting where she is or the date and time.
I know I have found it easy to lose patience when my grandparents repeat the same questions over and over again, or when they have trouble moving around, especially since I have had to stay home more with all the restrictions and shelter in place orders.
But what I learned after our family dance party, is something I will never forget. To begin with, just because relatives are getting slower and older that doesn’t mean they still aren’t fun to be around. And my grandmother can still dance!! How much my papa, nana and I laughed today!
So it has been hard to be home a lot, but spending a couple of uninterrupted hours with loved ones talking, laughing (or dancing) via the internet felt as good as visiting them. It was obvious that the quality time we spent showed us, and reminded us all, that we still love and care for one another, even if we can’t be with each other right now.
Other things we all can do to show our relatives that we care is sending a card, or a letter. If your grandparents are tech savvy (I know my nana is… kind of) sending an email with some pictures of your family attached is a quick way to say hello and brighten up someone’s day, especially if you live further away.
Finally, it’s important to just remind our loved ones that we’re there for them (young or old) during the pandemic. A call, an email, a quick text can mean the world to those who care about you most, even if it is difficult for you. Making the time to connect with these relatives will give you memories that will last you a lifetime. It did for me.