It’s funny how once you get to a certain age, you start to understand the meaning of “The Circle of Life”. Not from Simba’s standpoint (You remember Mufasa said it in The Lion King) but from a child, to a mom, to a daughter. As time goes by we move up in generations. This is why we’ll celebrate the third annual National Day of Joy, founded by Comfort Keepers on Wednesday, June 30, 2021.

Let me explain:

As children, our concerns are how early we have to go to bed or when we’ll get the newest toy. We depend solely on our parents for everything. As adults (20s, 30s, 40s), we have children and most often a career, we are now busy with taking care of our family and most likely still depending on our parents. They babysit, pick up the kids when needed, and they love to be needed. With a blink of an eye, the time comes when our parents need our help. We are now the daughters (or sons) who have to care for our parents’ needs.

When I learned about the National Day of Joy, I loved everything about it. If you care for a parent, you understand how much it’s needed. 

My mother-in-law moved in with us seven months ago, not because she wanted to but because she had to. She was at a point in her life where she shouldn’t be living in a big house on her own. She moves slower but can still get around and although her kids and grandkids are all grown, she still wants to be needed. Life may get busy with day-to-day tasks and activities, but finding joy, at any age, is important for physical and mental health, as well as your overall well-being.

It’s The Little Things In Life….

This short quote is so true. 

It’s the little things in life that bring joy. One of the things that brings the most joy to my mother -in-law is cooking for her family. We have been cooking together so I can write down the recipes that have been passed down through generations. So many recipes get lost in families, I wanted to make sure ours didn’t. We often have all the grandchildren and great-grandchildren here for dinner. Sometimes it’s a quick meal with burgers on the grill, to sit down Sunday dinners with macaroni and meatballs. You can see the joy on her face when she’s giving instruction or telling a story to the great-grandkids as they all sit around her. 

Sharing these special times not only give you great memories but bring real joy in our lives.

Others bring joy to our seniors’ lives too, Comfort Keepers is an in-home care provider, offering customized services to meet the unique needs of seniors and other adults in need of assistance. The name itself is what they call their caregivers because they not only provide care to our loved ones, but they help to make our loved ones live a more joyful, safer, and more enjoyable life, all from the comfort of home. The last year and a half has been challenging for many of our loved ones. The drive-by birthday and anniversary parades weren’t enough and they longed to see and hug everyone – in person!

It’s difficult for seniors to have someone come into their home to “help” them. They want to be independent and they want to be the caregivers. They need to be treated with the dignity, respect, compassion, and the care they deserve. Comfort Keepers does just that, providing seniors the opportunity to live happy, fulfilling independent lives.

How important is the National Day of Joy- check out this info from a survey

Last year’s survey saw Americans missing out on dining out, travel and personal freedom. This year, respondents find the most joy in connecting with family and loved ones over restaurants, traveling or even wearing masks less often. It’s connecting with people – not things, events or places – that give people the most joy.

• Seeing family members (42%) and spending time with them (38%) brings Americans more joy than traveling (37%), seeing close friends (32%) or not wearing a mask as often (28%).
• Seniors over the age of 65 prioritized seeing family the most (55%), compared to last year, when dining at a restaurant topped their post-pandemic to-do list.
• People plan to see their loved ones as soon as they’re vaccinated (45%), before attending a sporting event (20%) and frequenting the beach or pool (27%).

How will you celebrate the National Day of Joy, founded by Comfort Keepers? Tell us how you bring joy to your elderly parents.

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Additional Info About NDOJ

Comfort Keepers, a leading provider of in-home care for seniors and adults in need of assistance, will celebrate their third annual “National Day of Joy” on Wednesday, June 30, 2021. The National Day of Joy, founded by Comfort Keepers, takes place each year on the last Wednesday of June and was established to encourage and inspire individuals to find moments of joy every day.

Day of Joy events were held in cities and states nationwide, newspapers, magazines and television news programs reported on the Day of Joy, and thousands shared their experiences on social media.

Comfort Keepers believes that promoting joy in their clients’ lives is their most important job. Regardless of their age, the people they care for desire all the same things that people of any age do – connectedness, love, meaning, purpose, and hope.

Additional Info About Comfort Keepers®

Comfort Keepers® is a leading franchise network in the in-home care market for seniors and other adults needing care. Since its founding in 1998, the network has grown to more than 600 franchised locations around the world by staying true to the founders’ goal of providing quality, caring in-home care services that allow clients the opportunity to age in place. In August of 2009, the brand was strengthened when the franchisor, CK Franchising, Inc. was purchased by Sodexo, a global leader that delivers Quality of Life services to over 75 million consumers in 80 countries each day. In addition to providing services that focus on health care and senior markets, Sodexo’s integrated offerings encompass more than 45 years of experience in reception, safety, maintenance and cleaning, food services, facilities and equipment management, and concierge services. For more information, visit ComfortKeepers.com.

Disclaimer: we have partnered with Comfort Keepers, however, all thoughts and opinions are our own.