Sandwiched
When you’re a member of the sandwich generation, it’s a blessing to be part of a team taking care of an elderly relative vs. being alone. Not everyone has a team so I consider myself to be lucky.
When I started this column almost two years ago, I shared various members of Mom’s care team with you all. This included the hardworking people at her facility as well as my brother, sister-in-law, sister, my husband and me. Today I’d like to give a special “shout out” to my brother Mark, who just visited Mom this week when he was in town.
For a team to work well, each of its members should use their strengths. With his wife Janie’s assistance, Mark has handled Mom’s finances and insurance for almost four years now since she moved into an assisted living facility not far from my house.
Mark’s always had a good head on his shoulders in regards to money. He has been using it well to ensure Mom can stay in her wonderful apartment for the rest of her life. He updates my sister and me once a year to keep us in the loop on Mom’s finances. He’s also been in the insurance business for decades so he understands all of that stuff about Medicare, supplement plans, etc.
Thank you, Lord.
I already take care of my business and family’s finances, which is almost more than I can handle. I cannot imagine dealing with Mom’s investments and bills on top of everything. It’s definitely not one of my strengths.
And insurance is at the top of my list of things in life that drive me Absolutely. Insane. I don’t understand it and I certainly couldn’t fathom navigating Medicare. By the way, when you Google “Medicare,” the word “nightmare” often follows closely. Coincidence? I don’t think so.
I recently read a wonderful book that talked about dividing and conquering tasks between siblings when it comes to caring for an elderly parent. It made me appreciate my brother and his wife Janie more than ever.
People may see me visiting my mom and taking care of various things for her like groceries, doctor appointments, over the counter medications, etc. But they don’t realize all of the “behind the scenes” work that Mark and Janie do week in and week out. For example, Janie recently caught an error on one of Mom’s bills. I was thankful for her attention to detail.
So, Mark, Janie – I just want to say I appreciate you and I’m glad you’re on Team Sandwich with me. It’s wonderful to know that all of us working together help to make this stage of Mom’s life as good as possible.