This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine (593 hits)

Aging in the African American Community

“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.” My granddaughter sang this song to me to remind me to be present and available for my family to be thankful for my health and ability to maintain good health.

It is awesome that I can play games with her and prepare my own meals, bathe myself, dress myself and maintain my own daily survival. There are many of my peers in my age group that cannot take care of themselves.

Remember when grandma could watch the children and cook a big holiday meal, or granddad would repair our car and give us money when we needed it. When their health began declining and they needed us, we were not available.

No one wants to relinquish their independence and become reliant on others for their daily survival. Imagine an adult that has taken care of themselves and others for years unable to care for themselves in the most basic ways.

Many families must work all day and cannot to be available to provide the support needed or they don’t know how to set up a day time assistant for their aging parent to be able to stay at home.

We want to know that our loved ones are in a clean facility, that the food is good and that they are not being abused or their basic needs not being neglected. We become dependent upon a system that we are not familiar with, so we must step up and get involved. Continue reading Posted By: Omitunde Slack
Sunday, March 8th 2009 at 10:40AM
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