Our Sunset Years

We Shouldn’t Have to Worry

As we age, we shouldn’t have to worry about where we will live or about our health. But it is a constant worry. Not one of us wants to end up in a nursing home or an assisted living facility. But the fact is many of us do. It’s such a horrid, terrible way to spend the rest of your life. 

Nursing homes are notorious for taking every single penny you have. They like you to be dependent on them. They take your house, your vehicle, as well as your self worth. Penniless and broken you live the rest of your life out with others in the same boat as you are. 

We Don't Want to Be a Burden

Not wanting to be a burden on family members strikes hard in the hearts of seniors. Not one of us wants to be a drain, a weight felt in the heart of our kids and grandkids. We all want to be able to live out the rest of our lives in our homes. Home is where the heart is. There is no truer saying. Nothing more heartfelt than this, the comforts of home. It brings us peace and tranquility even in the roughest of times. 

A nursing home is a last resort. A place we are taken when family members can no longer take care of us. It's a nightmare on Elm Street, it’s overcrowded and uncaring. It has the capacity of taking the wind out of our sails. Exhaustion and lifelessness engulf us. The end of the road, a dead end with no other destination in sight. Filled with hopelessness and tears that flow without stopping. It is a stripping of our vanity. We are left adrift with no compass. No dreams and no tomorrow. An endless cycle of sameness. The fear of not being able to care for ourselves fills us with self-loathing.

The cost of a nursing home leaves us stunned. Shattered and alone with nothing left but the clothes on our backs. Our home is gone, we can no longer drive, leaving us utterly dependent on those who surround us. No wonder some of us are crabby and miserable. We have no dignity left; it’s gone like the leaves on a maple tree on a windy fall day. 

Seniors Get Shafted

Personally, I believe the world should take care of seniors. Government subsidized nursing homes should be offered. No cost to anyone who cares to enter. After all, the government wastes money on many frivolous, fruitless, tasteless endeavors. Why not use this money for something worthwhile. Like taking care of the people who took care of us. Without stripping them bare. At the very least, please leave them with their dignity. Taking away everything, they hold precious, leaving them with no hope for a brighter day, or a better tomorrow. How can we make this a reality? 

Karma Sucks

The world seems to care not. Karma is a thing, and everyone gets old at some point in their lives. When we are young, we do not give it a second thought. But as we age it is at the forefront of our mind. Keeping our minds is the most important thing. If that goes, we may as well sign our lives over. Because we won’t know it anyway. It is the terror that keeps me awake at night. The night dreams that startle me out of sleep. Not being able to take care of myself. It’s a slippery slope, not one I want to venture down. Dementia runs in my family, and it scares the living daylights out of me. Hereditary or not. I do not want it. Loss of memory, not knowing your surroundings. Who you are. What you stand for. The brain is a curious thing. It needs to be fed knowledge to keep it healthy. Learning is always a good thing. Never stop, never give up, never secede. Priorities, keep them alive and thriving. Inactivity is never a good thing. Stay busy, stay motivated, and never stop testing your brain. 

It's Not Home

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An assisted living facility is not as bad as a nursing home. That being said I don’t want to wind up in one. The facilities I have seen have one room, with a bed, a refrigerator, and a bathroom. Dining is done elsewhere. Some people like solitude when they eat. A busy dining room full of other people isn’t up their alley. Me, I’d stay in my room and read. The food would have to be brought in to me. Reading has saved me in many ways. Losing myself in a book is something I live to do. Would this help me if I did wind up in a home? Perhaps, but I don’t want to find out. Assisted living facilities should be government subsidized also. Why punish people who have to stay there? It is bad enough that they are forced to live there. Leaving them broke and without money doesn’t help the situation. Too many greedy people in our government worrying about the wrong things. Senior care should be a top priority but sadly it isn’t. 

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Take care of yourself. No one else will do it for you. Live, love and always learn.

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