Ebenezer Cares
  • Home
  • Housing & Services
    • Affordable Housing
    • Independent Living
    • Cooperative Living
    • Assisted Living >
      • What To Look For When Choosing
    • Memory Care >
      • Marysue's Blog
      • Tips For Caregivers
      • Caregiver Support Groups
      • Dimensions Program
      • Testimonials
      • Intimacy Sexuality and Dementia
    • Ebenezer Transitional Care
    • Ebenezer Care Centers
    • Ebenezer Enhanced Care Suites
    • Child Care
    • Ebenezer Stay By The Day Apartments
  • Careers
    • Job Search
    • Working Here
    • Career Areas
    • Locations
  • Resources
    • Adult Day Programs
    • Beauty and Barber Shop
    • Care At Home
    • Life Line Services
    • Fairview Home Medical Equipment
    • Fairview Partners
    • Hospice Care
    • Palliative Care Program
    • Fairview Home Care Falls Risk/Balance Program
    • Tips For Caregivers
    • Care Management Services
    • Caregiver Support Groups
    • Advance Care Planning
    • Spiritual Health
  • CEUs
  • Programs
    • Ebenezer Intergenerational Program
    • Adult Day >
      • Ebenezer Ridges Adult Day Program
      • Ebenezer DayBreak Adult Day Program
      • Ebenezer Minneapolis Adult Day Program
      • Martin Luther Campus Adult Day Program
    • Life Long Learning
    • Horticultural Therapy
    • Deaf Services
    • Ebenezer Child Care
    • Spiritual Health
    • EverActive Exercise Classes
    • Volunteer
    • Giving To Ebenezer
  • Blog
  • Ebenezer Management Services
  • Fairview
  • About Us
    • Executive Team
    • Ebenezer History
    • News and Events

Tips and Helpful Advice for Seniors and Caregivers

Spirituality and Aging – Holding on and Letting Go

12/11/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture

Religious and spiritual beliefs and practices are important in the lives of many of us. When we get older, we reflect back on our lives and also look forward to a sense of meaning, purpose and connectedness in aging. Some of that involves deciding what we want to hold on to or let go of.
 
So many of Ebenezer’s new residents have to engage in the process of holding on and letting go simply by moving into a smaller apartment than the home they had previously lived in.
 
“What do we do with the desk that won’t fit in? How about the Holiday decorations – maybe our daughter and son-in-law could use them for their house? What will it be like to get to know all of these other people?”
 
While this process can be quite painful, it also prepares us for a journey of holding on and letting go of other things. Which unresolved conflicts prevent us from feeling at peace? Can we let them go? Can we seek reconciliation?
 
According to a Gallop poll, the four major spiritual concerns Americans have about aging, death and dying are:
  • Forgiveness by God or what one holds sacred
  • Reconciliation of broken relationships
  • Giving and receiving forgiveness for past offenses
  • Having a blessing from one’s loved ones.
 
These important concerns can be engaged through our spiritual or religious practices. Prayer, meditation, pilgrimages, fasting, and reaching out to neighbors can be very significant religious practices at any stage in one’s life. Spiritual practices are equally diverse and may include meditation, yoga, walks in nature, appreciation of art, music, joining with others for a common purpose. In addition, writing a legacy document or videotaping an autobiography can be quite meaningful for those creating it and those with whom it is shared.
​
The magazine “Real Simple” published an article in 2005 titled “Getting to know you” by Erik Jackson. He starts off by saying: 
“Photo albums? Check.
Family Tree? Got it.
A deeper understanding of our relatives and friends?
That starts here.”

 
He then lists many questions as conversation starters or almost as an interview format that a good friend, spouse, sibling, or other loved one can ask. Some unique questions are: What is the bravest thing you have ever done? Was there one person who had a big impact on your working life, like a mentor? What are the secrets to a good marriage or relationship? What have you always regretted not asking your parents?
 
This process of making meaning out of one’s life can be a source of hope, strength and peace. It can bring us the depth of love and connection that we may yearn for. 
--Rev. Mirjam Berger
Ebenezer Corporate Director of Spiritual Health



0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    September 2017
    July 2017
    May 2017
    February 2017
    December 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Ebenezer is Minnesota’s largest senior living operator with 100 years of experience serving older adults. As part of Fairview Health Services, Ebenezer is dedicated to healing, discovering and educating for longer, healthier and meaningful lives. ​
Discrimination is Against the Law. We comply with applicable Federal civil rights laws. We do not discriminate against, exclude or treat people differently because of race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex or sexual orientation..
Español  Soomaali   Tiếng Việt    العربية

Русский   Oroomiffa   Hmoob   繁體中文   አማርኛ   ខ្មែរ   ພາສາລາວ   한국어   Français   فارسی   ကညီ

Services

Assisted Living
Independent Living
Memory Care
Transitional Care
Care Centers
Care Suites
Child Care
​
Adult Day Programs
Stay By The Day Apartments
​Intergenerational Programs

resources

​Resources for seniors and caregivers

CEUs

Programs hosted through Ebenezer and our communities. ​

Careers

BLOG
​Fairview Health Services
Privacy Policy
Covered Entities
Ebenezer
Fair Housing
Top 100 Work Places
Privacy © COPYRIGHT 2018 Fairview Health Systems.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
.
  • Home
  • Housing & Services
    • Affordable Housing
    • Independent Living
    • Cooperative Living
    • Assisted Living >
      • What To Look For When Choosing
    • Memory Care >
      • Marysue's Blog
      • Tips For Caregivers
      • Caregiver Support Groups
      • Dimensions Program
      • Testimonials
      • Intimacy Sexuality and Dementia
    • Ebenezer Transitional Care
    • Ebenezer Care Centers
    • Ebenezer Enhanced Care Suites
    • Child Care
    • Ebenezer Stay By The Day Apartments
  • Careers
    • Job Search
    • Working Here
    • Career Areas
    • Locations
  • Resources
    • Adult Day Programs
    • Beauty and Barber Shop
    • Care At Home
    • Life Line Services
    • Fairview Home Medical Equipment
    • Fairview Partners
    • Hospice Care
    • Palliative Care Program
    • Fairview Home Care Falls Risk/Balance Program
    • Tips For Caregivers
    • Care Management Services
    • Caregiver Support Groups
    • Advance Care Planning
    • Spiritual Health
  • CEUs
  • Programs
    • Ebenezer Intergenerational Program
    • Adult Day >
      • Ebenezer Ridges Adult Day Program
      • Ebenezer DayBreak Adult Day Program
      • Ebenezer Minneapolis Adult Day Program
      • Martin Luther Campus Adult Day Program
    • Life Long Learning
    • Horticultural Therapy
    • Deaf Services
    • Ebenezer Child Care
    • Spiritual Health
    • EverActive Exercise Classes
    • Volunteer
    • Giving To Ebenezer
  • Blog
  • Ebenezer Management Services
  • Fairview
  • About Us
    • Executive Team
    • Ebenezer History
    • News and Events