Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
(Reflections on a Caregiver’s Birthday)
LIFE GOES ON…
“Ob-LA-Di, Ob-La-Da, Life goes on, Bra
La-la, how their life goes on
Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, life goes on, Bra
La-la, how their life goes on”
And the key words of that Beatles song are, “how their life goes on.”
The lives of my Friends and Family do go on, while I remain in a Caregiver’s perpetual pause.
My Friend Karla purchased a new home.
My Friend Ann’s youngest child graduated from college and is about to take the world by storm.
My Friend Troy just became a Grandmother. Well not “just,” since her Grandson is a year old.
My Friend Pamela’s son was accepted to the college of his choice, and she will soon be an empty nester.
My Friends Flash, Robert, Chase, Alex, and Jamie have all suffered losses of Sisters, Parents, and a Child. Courtesy of YouTube and Zoom, I watched my friends grieve knowing that they were wondering how their lives would go on. And I watched all the while wishing that I could reach through the screen to give them each a hug.
Life goes on.
My Friend Elaine packed up both of her daughters and sent them off to college where one of them is now studying abroad.
My younger Cousin welcomed his first child—a baby girl named after his Mom.
In the time that I have been our Mom’s Caregiver, my Brother met and married his new love.
Life goes on.
Life goes on—except in the life of a Caregiver. Days go by each one very much the same yet no different than the day before.
When I ask my friends, “What’s going on in your world?” they tell me. They tell me how their lives are going on while my answer to a similar question is, “Nothing new really.”
And so, I congratulate my Friends. I send uplifting cards. And I watch the key moments in their lives on screen. I live through the days of their lives, and I feel their joy, sadness and happiness as their lives move forward.
There have been no major changes in my world as a Caregiver. I have no time to develop a new habit, hobby or to even do things differently. My life is seemingly on Pause.
I am the same size. I have maintained the same hairstyle and color. LOL. The only new people I’ve met are the Crew Members at Starbucks, Whole Foods, and High Spirits (the Wine store). I have remained single with no children. And there are no guys in my life except (see above). I have developed no new interests but now know a host of things that I never ever want to do again!
I do realize that despite the fact that my life seems to be on pause, life does go on.
After all, Tom Brady retired from the NFL and returned to the League without missing a single game.
Life goes on.
Yet in still as a Caregiver, I feel that my life is at a standstill. The world may be turning but I am running in place trying to catch the life I used to know.
TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY!
“Ob-LA-Di, Ob-La-Da, Life goes on, Bra
La-la, how their life goes on”
“Life Goes On”
The GOAT–Tom Brady–4Ever a Michigan Wolverine!
Go Blue
Hail! Hail! Michigan!