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Memories fill my mind and inspire me…
It’s the first Day of Chanukah- although last evening was the first Night
It’s hard to explain but it’s how we celebrate as Jews
TRADITION is the word of the Day to make this weird system, OK!
So on the first NIGHT we lit candle #1 but we actually lit two
Confusing at it may all seems there is a rhythm to this scene!
As my mother would sing, “Oh Chanukah, Oh Chanukah, come light the Menorah…”
We three kids, Gary, Joel, and I, gathered around for the potato latkes and gifts!
A latke is a potato pancake fried until it’s golden crisp and yet mine never gets that crispy like my momma’s or Baube’s.
Latkes with applesauce or sour cream were such a delight (still is) and waiting with bated breath for a wrapped gift was supreme.
I don’t remember what my brothers used to get but I knew if I got a new coloring book on Night #1 – crayons or colored pencils would be on Night #2.
The gifts we received were modest at best, do you remember getting a magic slate?
We played dreidel for fun spinning it to see who would win, and often getting a history lesson on Nes, Gadol, Hayah, Sham – “a great miracle happened there,” referring to the miracle of the holiday.
It was a time for family, and each night another miracle would occur as my parent’s always found a way to get us gifts that would make us smile and enjoy.
Even when we unwrapped a package with underwear, we would smile and say thank you, it’s just what I wanted!
The simplicity of this holiday in our home are memories I will hold on to forever. And the reason we had two lit candles last night, and tonight we will have three is because one is called the Shamash, you light this candle, and this candle lights the others each night for 8 nights.
Oh Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah
Come light the menorah
Let’s have a party
We’ll all dance the hora
Gather ’round the table
We’ll give you a treat
Sivivon to play with and latkes to eat
And while we are playing
The candles are burning low
One for each night, they shed a sweet light
to remind us of days long ago
One for each night, they shed a sweet light
to remind us of days long ago.
Also published on Medium
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https://newclevelandradio.medium.com/how-do-you-spell-chanukah-f4ccc41592df
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Memories
Courage to Caregivers_Kristi Horner
As we begin a new month, our new theme is spirituality, and this week, our focus is on a Higher Power.
I consider myself a woman of strong faith, and I use my faith and spirituality in my caregiving journey every day. I rely on my Higher Power to love and support me through anything … whether it’s a traumatic accident, a disaster, the challenges of being a good caregiver, or just life. And when I “let go” of all the things that I think I am supposed to be – the outside expectations of perfection, other people’s definitions of success, and the notion that I’m not good enough – I am able to recognize that I DO MATTER, and my God loves me just as I am.
Yet, at Courage to Caregivers, we realize that everyone’s journey to find and connect with their Higher Power is an intensely personal one. That’s why we don’t focus on one definition of a Higher Power in our work. We invite our participants, who come from ALL faith experiences, to find, rely on, and connect with THEIR Higher Power. We understand that a Higher Power can be different things to different people. It can be a religious deity, a spiritual power that guides your choices and decisions, the power of nature and the cycle of life and survival, or the power of a like-minded group that supplies support and guidance.
For me, connecting to my Higher Power has been part of my quest for greater meaning, understanding, and clarity of purpose. I’m continually reframing my relationship with my Higher Power, and it starts with the belief that there is something at work in my life that is far greater than just me. I believe that sometimes you have to allow yourself to be guided by something bigger than you. I also believe that we meet every person for a reason. I do not believe in coincidence.
And when I think of connecting with a Higher Power, I know it can happen in all kinds of ways, including prayer, mindfulness, connecting with nature, journaling, exercising, meditating, helping others, or therapy. If you’re still searching, just be open-minded, listen to your own internal voice, and keep searching.
The concept of a Higher Power really starts with YOU.
Kristi Horner
Founder and Executive Director
Courage to Caregivers
PS: Interested in pre-ordering our NEW custom 2021 journal? Email Kristi to get on the list – so we don’t run out!
Courage to Caregivers_Kristi Horner 11/23/20
The second year of Courage to Caregivers’ programming has been one of the most challenging and most fulfilling I can remember.
The impact of the COVID-19 crisis can’t be understated, not only for our caregivers but for our staff as well. Without hesitation, I can say that the uncertainty and fear amidst COVID-19 have increased the request for services to support mental illness caregivers exponentially.
Now, more than ever, it is essential to connect and support caregivers. Before the pandemic, one in five Americans were living with mental illness. Now, the cases have increased by anywhere from two to four times. More than 34% of Americans say they now live with anxiety or depression. How does that impact caregivers? The stress of caregiving is literally taking an average of a decade off life expectancy.
Courage to Caregivers is here to help.
Our goal is always to be in the caregiver burnout prevention business. How have we responded to COVID?
- In March 2020, we moved all of our programs to a virtual platform. We are now serving more caregivers than ever!
- We’ve added a third day to our service offerings, supporting caregivers no matter where they live, including Pennsylvania, New York, South Carolina, New Jersey, Utah, Colorado, Texas, California and Delaware.
- We saw a decrease in the stress of caregiving in our one-year pilot of our Breathing Meditation program by 48% on average, and a 36% reduction of stress in our Support Groups.
As we push toward the end of the year, we have a few organizational milestones we are excited to report. Earlier this month, we had a Summit for professional and family caregivers, called “Caring for the Caregiver: Illuminating HOPE in Uncertain Times with a Focus on Connectedness, Self-Care and Empowerment.” Also this month, we kicked off our first fundraiser, called “Illumination! 2020,” encouraging everyone who is involved with Courage to Caregivers — volunteers, staff, and donors — to be Illuminators in their communities. If you’re interested in joining us, please contact us via our website.
Why have we gone to such lengths to continue our programs? Because we KNOW they work:
Stephanie, who lives in South Carolina and is launching her own business, talks to her peer support volunteer on Mondays, attends breathing meditation and a support group on Wednesdays, and then looks forward to receiving her weekly email on Thursdays. “I have more than one avenue for support. While these programs are all new, it’s nice to know others have similar struggles.”
Our programs also help people like Sally every single day:
“COVID has been a challenge — there’s more to fuel my loved one’s anxiety that was already there… My direct caregiving has increased. It’s been hard to find any programs for my loved ones or at-home caregivers during this time. The burden falls on me. I work full-time and am a full-time caregiver, therapist, cook and maid.
I look forward to the Courage to Caregivers programs every week. Getting together with others with similar stories to mine helps with my ability to cope. We’re all in this together! We share ideas. There’s not a single time I don’t take away something that I use later.”
Our goal is to empower caregivers with the tools they need so they can provide support without burnout. Our solutions include One-to-One Caregiver Peer Support, Breathing Meditation classes and Support Groups.
But we can’t continue to do this critical work without you.
Help me celebrate the important role that caregivers play, during National Caregivers Month in November, by committing to support Courage to Caregivers now!
Supporting our programs is easy. All you need to do is visit our website and donate there (no fees).
And, if you have more questions about Courage to Caregivers, I’d be more than happy to discuss our programs, program sponsorships or the services that we offer at your convenience. You can email me. I will respond to you personally.
Thanks again for the way YOU illuminate HOPE for caregivers everywhere!
Caring TOGETHER,
Kristi Horner
Founder and Executive Director
Courage to Caregivers
Courage to Caregivers _ Kristi Horner
The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” —Mahatma Gandhi
We really have three topics this week – volunteering, mentorship, and saying no – but they’re all wrapped up in the overall idea of giving you.
According to HelpGuide, volunteering can “reduce stress, combat depression, keep you mentally stimulated, and provide a sense of purpose. While it’s true that the more you volunteer, the more benefits you’ll experience, volunteering doesn’t have to involve a long-term commitment or take a huge amount of time out of your busy day. Giving in even simple ways can help those in need and improve your health and happiness.”
One specific way we can give of ourselves is through mentorship. This is especially true for caregivers. While others in our lives may express compassion and sympathy, only someone who has walked in a caregiver’s shoes can truly understand the feelings, frustrations, worries, and logistical concerns of caregiving. At Courage to Caregivers, our Support Groups and One-to-One Caregiver Peer Support programs serve as connections between caregivers – those who want to be mentors, and those who need mentors.
As we make choices about volunteering and mentorship, however, it’s important to remember that we all need to say “no” sometimes. By saying “no,” we are able to place boundaries on our time, energy, and space. Failure to do so can leave us feeling overburdened and overcommitted … and I’m speaking from experience here. If you need help with this, and most of us do, here are 14 ways that you can say “no.”
Another way to look at it is that knowing when to say “no” also helps you know when to say “yes.” To get to your best “yes” … to give the best of YOU to others and to yourself … start by deciding what you want to learn and what you want to share.
Giving of ourselves benefits others, and it can be a powerful form of self-care, too. When you give, you also gain. When you focus on the needs of others and support your community, you can find a new sense of purpose. When you serve others and recognize their worth as human beings, you can improve your own life experience and outlook. When you give in ways that aren’t related to your role as caregiver, you can discover more about your own interests and what makes YOU unique.
Kristi Horner
Founder and Executive Director
Courage to Caregivers
A Message From Courage to Caregivers
Design Your Downtime
10/30/20
As life continues, celebrations happen, curveballs are thrown, and general life develops, it can be hard to remember you have interests outside of work and family. Your outside interests often have a positive effect on your work and family life. This is all the more reason to work on designing your downtime. Designing your downtime means not only doing what you love purely because you love it but also carving out the time to do it. This is not always easy. Maybe the best way to think about this is something our summer intern Maximilian Lauster said. He explained that when he gets stressed or overwhelmed, the best thing for him to do is completely forget about it, drown out the world for a little while, and then come back. Max does this by playing chess or listening to music, but you can do it however you want to. No matter what form it takes, designing your downtime is essential to life and essential to your happiness. It’s a work in progress – yet, my guess is that YOU are, too! AND you deserve it.
Reflections – My Mother 2016
was a seamstress, she made dolls, and knit caps for newborns
Courage to Caregivers – Kristi Horner
We have a lot of resources to share this week. First, it’s National Suicide Prevention Week, September 6-12, and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention reminds us that you don’t have to be a mental health professional to make a difference.
September is also National Preparedness Month, and here’s an awesome resource to help you plan for anything that might come your way. And it’s National Self-Care Awareness Month which, of course, we observe year-round!
Our self-care topic this week is decluttering your space, and probably the most famous expert on this topic is Marie Kondo, whose KonMari method is focused on how to make your home a more calm and relaxing space. With so many of us now working or learning from home, we could all use a little less stress and a little more peace and calm. Here are some of her top tips:
- Tame the clutter.
- Assign a place for everything.
- Bring the outside in.
- Purify your home.
- Turn up the cozy.
- Make tidying fun.
And here’s a checklist to get you started.
However, like many things about self-care, decluttering can be hard, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. So, if you’re like me, you might want to start small, maybe committing 30 minutes a day. Don’t try to do the entire house in one day – go room to room, closet to closet, drawer to drawer.
One of the benefits of decluttering is that it feels great to take control of something you can control, especially in these stressful and complicated times. The physical space in your home is one area where you are generally free to make the changes you want and adapt the environment to best meet your needs.
And as we declutter our physical space, we also need to consider decluttering our minds. When I think about this, I am reminded of when our daughter was little, and she had a hard time falling asleep at night. She would say, “Mommy, I have so many thoughts in my head – I can’t sleep!” So, we had the idea to keep a journal next to her bed so she could “empty” all those thoughts from her mind in order to fall asleep. It worked perfectly! Maybe journaling can help you declutter your mind, too.
Meditation also can help. Actually, I think about it as the antidote to a cluttered mind. Guided meditation has helped me, and I may be biased, but I think our Courage To Caregivers leaders are the best! Consider joining us on a Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday evening, or consider subscribing to our YouTube channel. Our Breathing Meditation program is designed just for this – to declutter your mind, heart, and soul!
Kristi Horner
Founder and Executive Director
Courage to Caregivers