As life goes on, our children grow, we gain more experience, and our parents continue to age. At some point, they will retire and come face to face with feelings of uselessness, loneliness, and sometimes depression.
However, the one time that almost anyone can say they have fond memories of is their time on family vacation. Whether it was to the beach, just down the street at the local motel, or to a historical U.S. city, every vacation has that one unbelievable moment that just seemed like it would never happen to them or a time where everyone laughed until they cried.
Family trips leave us with pictures of tuckered out little ones and Dad’s crazy vacation wardrobe swimming around in our heads. Below are some ways you can keep that euphoria going for your elderly.
A Fitting Location
There comes a time when our parents will no longer be able to keep up with the care and maintenance of their own home. Many sons and daughters are constantly on the move and unable to stay home and take care of aging parents the way they need to be and deserve. The idea of placing our loved ones in a nursing home is often discouraging, as well.
On the other hand, there are adult living communities that can offer our parents the care they require along with the feel of their favorite hotel. With amenities like a swimming pool, a putting green, and an evening fire pit, our parents will enjoy the relaxation of the vacation feel every day of their life.
Listen More
Along with making sure that your parents are comfortable where they live, there are some other things we can do to make sure they vacation the rest of their life. One of those things is to listen more.
When we were little and on a family trip with our parents, there were positively times that our choice not to listen to what we were told caused them great stress during a time that was meant for fun and rest. Why not take a little more time to listen? Parents spend their whole lives attempting to gain and keep our attention.
Isn’t it time we reward their efforts. Besides, there will come a day they will no longer tell us that story for the one hundredth time and we will miss it dearly. Help your parents have the vacation of their dreams. Listen more.
Slow Down
In this fast paced world, stopping to smell the roses is a luxury most of us don’t have. In the process, we pass up some of the best things in life for the good. A good example of that is how we continue to put off visiting our parents because of a deadline at work, or because little Johnny has ball practice and little Susie needs help with homework.
Those are all viable excuses, but all of these situations can be moved or prevented. Slow down. Take the time to visit with your parents. Take them out shopping or to dinner. Perpetuate the vacation lifestyle by spending all the time with them they wished for when you thought they had no clue about life (usually the teen years.)
Vacations are a time of fun, rest, and relaxation. Making memories that last a lifetime doesn’t have to end when your parents hit a certain age. Make the effort to help their golden years feel like the vacation of their dreams.
Reply