What a beautiful piece to share and so important to remember the cycle of life and how someday we will be an Abuelita. My own Abuelita was cared for by her 8 children to the very end SubhanAllah and she was strong and sound of mind. My mother was the closest to her but she never reached the point of physical incapability. I personally feel very disconnected from the elderly in my family or elderly in general as I didn’t have much experience with them growing up or a need to care for them. However, my oldest daughter Ameera, surprisingly, connected with them during her internship at a doctors office last year. She loved speaking with them and hearing their stories. This summer she is doing her CNA certification, and she was ridiculed by her younger cousins and some family members who said she would have to “wipe b*tt!” With exasperated and disgusted tones. Ameera was very patient with them and surprisingly did not pay any mind to these comments. I was taken aback by the great empathy my daughter seemed to have in her. During one of her clinicals, she went to a nursing home, she texted me saying how sad she was and how she wanted to cry for the state of the elderly in the home and how sad and lonely and neglected they were. She said if she even spoke one word to them their face would suddenly light up so happy to receive some attention. I told her what she was doing was so incredibly important regardless of what others may say or think and that one day we would all be in those shoes and don’t we want someone to show us care and compassion?. She understood this without me having to tell her but I think I was more trying to tell myself. I’m grateful for this experience she is getting that will build her capacity for human connection 💕