The Blog From the Heart

A driver’s license. When we were teenagers, it was our symbol of independence: the ability to go where we wanted, when we wanted, how we...

(This article originally appeared in Modiinfo.) Your parents are Anglo (American, or British, or South African – or insert-your-English-speaking-country-here). You are Anglo (although you may feel it blurring the longer you live in Israel). Your kids? They’re not quite Anglo. They’re also not 100% Israeli (as evidenced by Israeli strangers who comment on my four-year-old’s cute American accent, and American strangers who comment on said four-year-old’s cute Israeli accent), b

When you’re in the business of “old people”, you have to think carefully about the right term to describe the segment of the population over age 65 (though new research shows that “old age” actually starts at 74 – but that’s for another blog). Finding an appropriate, respectful, politically correct term for people under age 15 is simple: Kids. Children. Young People. They all work. No objections. But over 65? That’s trickier. Older Adult? Seniors? Elderly? No matter what labe

This blog is the second of a two-part series addressing the challenge of caring for an elderly parent who is resistant to assistance. Part one of the series discussed our philosophy on how to approach the challenge in a way that facilitates success. Part two, below, shares anecdotes that highlight how we put our philosophy into action with our clients every day. On your last trip home to see your dad, you were alarmed to find his once spotless kitchen cluttered with dirty dis

This blog is the first of a two–part series addressing the challenge of caring for an elderly parent who is resistant to assistance. Part 1 discusses our philosophy on how to approach the challenge in a way that allows your parents to get the help they need, along with dignity and maximum independence. If you are reading this, you are probably in your late 40s to early 60s, and a member of the “sandwich generation,” a growing group of adult children trying to figure out how t

Guilt. It’s the feeling of broken diets, yelling at our kids, not calling a friend in need. It’s the sensation that we’re doing something we’re not supposed to do – or not doing something we are supposed to do. Guilt is often seen as an unpleasant, even shameful, emotion, but it may actually be getting a bad rap. It is built into the human emotion pack for a reason: it’s an effective motivator. It can get us to do the right thing, and to avoid doing things that are harmful to