Kathy Joy: Today on Caregiver Thursday, I'd like to talk about hidden confetti. My three year old is a powerhouse. She's my sparkle in what could be kind of a bleak outlook. We're trying to secure some monies to keep her afloat.
Today also in Pennsylvania, at least this corner of the state, it's rather dreary. It's 42 degrees, and rain has turned to sleet. We also had high wind warnings all last night. Never lost power.
Kathy Joy: Sometimes there's weight to caregiving. She says finding your confetti is a delightful endeavor. Joy: Point out what is shiny in the grime, in the grid. We have helps for every day.
Hello Cadre. My name is Kathy Joy and I also am known as Speak Wonder in the Cadre sphere. And today on Caregiver Thursday, I'd like to talk about hidden confetti. Finding confetti in the grit and grime of daily living. A while back, as a matter of fact, it was 2011, I blogged about it and I thought it would be something we could talk about today in a way of encouraging. So this is not the normal time that you see me on the Cadre. Anil is here. Mel Myers, you were with me earlier too when it was shortened.
So just a little. Hi Shannon. Just a little bit of explanation as to why I'm back at this time today. This is not my normal time slot, but I hopped in and I, I thank you. Hanila says I'm here for the confetti. Me too. So I had a not very much Wi Fi support and didn't realize it. So my original Cadre Talk live stream was cut short. So here I am, I'm back again and I'm in my little three year old's bedroom. Look at her little princess castle. Isn't that so cute? That's in the background here. And yeah, just a total girly room.
So cute. And oh, sorry if I made you dizzy. There's a cute sign in the window that says and though she be but little, she is fierce. Shakespeare. My three year old is a powerhouse. She'd be in the room with me, but she would totally dominate the stream. In fact, she would win you over with her energy and her silliness. So she's my confetti today. She's my sparkle. She's my shiny bit of humor in what could be kind of a bleak outlook. And by that I mean, hey Jules, good afternoon. By that bleak might be a strong word, but I am doing the very daunting thing of filling out paperwork is my mom's power of attorney to get her state assistance here in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
I live in Erie, Pennsylvania. She lives in Warren and she's in a skilled nursing facility. And we're trying to secure some monies to keep her afloat. And she's precious and she's important and she's a priority. However, I don't know if you've noticed this when you're in caregiver mode, sometimes when you go to the professionals who are doing a great job, they use language that I don't understand because they do it day in and day out. And so they're using terminologies that are mind boggling and I have to have them interpreted into civilianese so that I can understand what I'm working with.
I can understand what I need to do. And it's exhausting. Today also in Pennsylvania, at least this corner of the state, it's rather dreary. It's 42 degrees, and rain has turned to sleet. And another, you know, seven, eight degrees, it will be snow. We also had high wind warnings all last night. My wind chimes are going crazy. So crazy that they were actually hitting the side of my house, and I had to go outside and take them down. I thought I might get swirled up into the Emerald City at some point.
Never lost power. That was good. So it's been gray, a slate sky with rain falling out of it and feeling the heaviness. Sometimes there's weight to caregiving. It doesn't mean we don't like it or that we're not equal to the task. It doesn't mean that you can't do what you need to do. It just means that there's sometimes a weightiness to it. So finding your confetti, which I challenge you to do, is a delightful endeavor in looking for the glitter in the grime. Literally. One day, years ago, when I stepped out of the grocery store running errands and buying groceries for the family, I stumbled onto some confetti.
I was putting the bags in the car, and I looked down, and by my feet in the dirt in the parking lot was a little pink rocking horse. It was metallic and pink, and it just kind of winked up at me, like, ha. See, there? There's a surprise you didn't expect. And I love surprises. I love serendipity. Anila says I will help her find the confetti. Apologies. Need to drop. To give care to a friend. Oh, someone who's losing their job. See, on any given day, there's something going on, and she's gonna. Anila's gonna go help her friend find her confetti.
In the jarring reality of losing a job, Anila, you're leading with love, which is your mantra, which is your template, which is your way of reminding us how we need to go forward. And you're doing it by example, by who you are. Everyone who climbs in here on the hydrosphere has a big heart. I just feel a connection. Though we may never meet in person, there's a connectedness here, and it's lovely. So Anila is saying what I'm trying to say in so many words is help others find their confetti. Point out what is shiny in the grime, in the grid.
Not in a superficial way, but in a. A way that's authentic and a way that brings joy into the mix. And I had, of course I left it downstairs, so I'm gonna go by memory. I had some notes on what confetti might look like today. For you. It could be the hand clasp of a small child. I've experienced that with my three year old granddaughter Tilly as I take care of her today. It could be the hand clasp of an elder. I experienced that a few days ago when I went to see my 90 year old mom at her nursing home.
It could be laughter kind of burbling out of a throat that hasn't heard laughter or used laughter in a long time. It could be a glimpse of light in a face that has only known grief lately. And you get to witness that. That's confetti in the grime. It could be sitting with somebody to make a difficult, difficult phone call or write a difficult letter. You are literally the shiny bit in their day because you showed up and showed some care. You are the pink metallic unicorn or horse that somebody stumbled upon and discovered by doing so that they can get through this next task or this next day.
Your confetti might be a communication out of someone who's non verbal, a spark of recognition from someone who is in the wilderness of Alzheimer's. Confetti shows up in unique places and often it will sparkle and dazzle when we weren't even looking. How much better than when we are looking for it. And maybe we take some time to look around and find that which is sparkling on the horizon. Because if we get too fixated on our burdens, then we get a little bit dragged down and we don't need to do that because we have the Cadresphere.
We have the next live streamers coming on here. We have helps for every day. Tomorrow. Friday is grieving and you'll hear a lot about what's going on with the grievers and some helps in that direction. I love that Cadre is set up so that every day has a particular theme. Thank you for being here. Thank you for joining me on this random live that was unscheduled, but I see from the top of my screen that I have strong WI fi in the house. I didn't have it sitting in my car even though I was close to the house.
It didn't carry earlier. I love how organic we are, how we can just pivot and adapt and make something work that is part and parcel of being in the Cadre. I'm Kathy Joy. I'm glad to share this live stream with you. I invite you to look for confetti. You know, guys, I actually had a box of confetti I was going to throw into the air for effect. Maybe I'll just put it in the community chat as a still shot because that was my plan. Plans don't always go according to what we think they should go to. Mel.
Mel Myers just sent confetti. A birthday thing. Thank you. Thank you for interacting with me and for leaning into the conversation as we start winding down. If you have a shiny bit of confetti you'd like to share, whether it's an emoji, a heart shape, a sentiment, digital confetti, or an actual event or an idea that helps you remember that there is glimmer in your landscape today, there is something worth celebrating, no matter how small. Sometimes it's the smaller bits that shine the brightest.
Yeah, I do. Thank you for being here. I'm feeling just a burst of warmth and engagement from being in this community confetti. Being able to be there for my friend right now, Flexible work. That is great. Yes. Being able to flex because of your work schedule, you can actually be there for someone that's finding the confetti. Thank you for that example. It takes on different appearances and as you review your day, when you lay your head on your pillow, maybe you can think back and remember the shiny bits that got you through.
You are my confetti. I so appreciate you. You shine, you sparkle, you engage in conversation and you help me put one foot in front of the other so that I know. Yeah, I got this because we've got each other. Blessings. And I'll see you next week.
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