Gratitude & Grace For The Holidays

By Lori La  Bey, Founder of Alzheimer’s Speaks

Most of us, understand the holidays can be filled with fun and excitement, yet they can be sad, lonely, overwhelming and exhausting.  I find that staying connected to those who understand, appreciate and accept my range of emotions can help me process and move through whatever grabs a hold of me.

As the years have passed, so have many important people in my life.  Traditions I once took for granted are no more.  Life seems to morph into something new and brilliant in its own right. Personally, I still struggle with the loss of my parents, our traditional family structure and my pets.  All of them were such a bright light especially during the holidays.  As age creeps up on me, I find more people in my life are having health issues, several terminal. As I mourn for what our relationships once were, I try hard to remember the gifts wrapped in all stages of life and to be grateful and gracious for what I have had in life.  Each of us, no matter what our age or status in life have been given gifts others have not received.

During the holidays, I try to find the glory in gifts of the heart verse under the tree.  The holiday season will pass shortly, but my loving heart is always with me.  It is always near and costs me nothing to tap into.  It can help me find the joy in life.  Even when sadness hits, I find my feelings of great loss only come because I was blessed with a relationship filled with great love. Remembering this puts a smile on my face even when my heart still aches.

May you each have to strength and courage to go down new paths as life ebbs and flows in different directions, allowing you to experience new things in different ways.

Last, I want to thank each of you for believing in the work Alzheimer’s Speaks does and for sharing our work with those you know.  May you have a blessed holiday season filled with a deep richness of love and acceptance you have not felt before.

Additional Resource Information:

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