The Weight

Part-1

I initially thought of the song The Weight by The Band

And these lyrics—

Take a load off, Fanny
Take a load for free
Take a load off, Fanny
And (And, and)
You put the load right on me

Caregiving…

• has a physical weight,

• has an emotional weight,

• has a spiritual weight,

• has an intellectual weight,

• has a professional weight,

It has a weight

And the weight isn’t consistent.

• Sometimes it comes more at 2am,

• more in the middle of the day,

• more in the morning,

• more in a quiet moment of reflection,

• more when you’re exhausted,

• more when you least expect it.

But it’s always there

• Weighing you down

• Undermining your hope

• Diminishing your spirit

For all the caregivers or care partners reading this…

• I feel you

• I see you

• And I pray for you.

The next time you visit a caregiver, ask them about the nature of their weight.

Just listen.

And, if you see an opportunity, take an action to lessen their load

If only for a moment

Take care of yourselves,

Bob.

BTW: I wrote this while sitting at my desk, head in my hands, feeling tremendously weighed down by everything. I apologize if it was too heavy.

You can put the load right on me…