Remember when you were little and you knew you didn’t have to worry about anything because your parents made you feel safe and taken care of? As we grow older, we get married, have children, nurture our careers and find ourselves burning our candle at both ends and in the middle. It’s then we realize that the parents that took care of us and made us feel safe, now need us to take care of them and help them feel loved, secure and safe. Sometimes they don’t think or act the same as they did when they were a few years younger, maybe they don’t drive any longer, can’t keep track of the bills or their own medication, that’s when they need us more and more. My mother has said to me a few times, “did you ever in your life think you would have to take care of me,” no I didn’t, because I never thought about my parents getting old or changing, but here we are…things are changing. How do you now find the balance in your life? Your everyday life consists of a house to take care of, a job to go to every day, laundry to do,  meals to prepare, trash to take out and your own finances to take care of. If you’re married, you have the responsibility of a relationship to nurture and maintain. If you’re not careful, you can find yourself completely burned out and overwhelmed. I don’t have all the answers, but I know that being there for your parents is the right thing to do. Even if you can’t do it all yourself, you can find outside sources of help. The one thing I can tell you is, don’t be a hero. If you are tired, burned out and can’t go on, then it’s time to seek out other ways to keep your parents happy, healthy and safe. Remember your own children will be watching you and you will become their example for how to care for someone you truly love. One day, they may be helping you take care of things in your life. Full circle we come, from parenting our children to being parented by our children and that’s what real love looks like!

-this blog written by a fellow blogger