All You Need Is Love

All You Need Is Love

“Don’t find love, let love find you.  That’s why it’s called falling in love because you don’t force yourself to fall, you just fall.”  ~Unknown

            Happy Valentine’s Day!  For many of us today, today is a day to rejoice the affections of a loved one, pine for the love of a particular person or to revile the day as a commercial fraud.  Whichever way you lean, there are a few things you should know before passing final judgment.

            It is known that the Roman Emperor Claudius II had a priest named Valentine put to death of February 14th.  There is debate as to the true reasons behind the martyrdom of this early priest, but one story suggests that despite a decree from the emperor that banned marriage of young men (because single men made better soldiers), Valentine still married young lovers in secret.  Once it was found out, he was jailed and put to death around 270 AD.  The early church set the day for Valentine’s Day as the 14th of February as to coincide with the day that he was put to death, but it is more likely that the early church picked the middle of February as it was also the same time of the Pagan celebration of Lupercalia, a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture.  By placing the celebration of St. Valentine at the same time as the celebration of a Roman fertility god, the early church was able to win over many converts and in the 5th century, the celebration of Lupercalia was banned.  Over the years, the rituals and customers that have developed with St. Valentine’s Day have evolved from secret letters and cards to open declarations of love and affection.  It has become a multi-billion dollar industry as most countries in the western work celebrate one man’s effort to facilitate love.

            Though there are those who scoff at the idea of love, love is a very real and tangible thing that lifts us up or can drive a person to madness.  Jamie Ducharme of Time Magazine wrote an excellent article which shares 5 health benefits of love.

1.      Love makes you happy. 

Dopamine, the feel-good brain chemical, is especially active and acts as a mood intensifier that helps people feel extremely happy and very appreciative.

2.      Love helps us to feel less stressed.

The bonding hormone, Oxytocin, is released which gives that warm and fuzzy feeling for your loved one.  When people feel secure, they feel less stress as just being in the presence of a loved one can make a person feel more secure.

3.      Love eases anxiety.

The feeling of loneliness acts as a stressor to the body helping it to create feelings of anxiety.  This anxiety raises levels of cortisol and adrenaline which triggers the bodies stress response, so having feelings of love can counter these harmful feelings and restore calm within the body.

4.      Love inspires up to take better care of ourselves.

Being in love has the benefit of people having the desire to take better care of themselves by either getting regular health check-ups or doing more regular maintenance by being active and eating well.  People in love tend to act in a healthier manner not only for themselves but for their partner as well.

5.      Love helps you live longer.

This statement makes total sense given the other health benefits of love.  Studies have shown that couples in love enjoy a greater longevity of life.  Lower stress levels, healthier lifestyles and a desire to be around for each other have been proven to help those in love to live a better life.

            The good news that someone can get from the article is that to achieve these 5 benefits of love, a person can receive them from either a close friend or family member.  Love is a gift that is often given in trust as an act of vulnerability.  The sharing of oneself with another.  In this world of social media and instant gratification, love still abounds as it has for thousands of years.  The method of connecting may be different but the benefits as still just as valid and just as important as ever.  I hope everyone has a wonderful day and I hope I have given you something new to think about if you are one of the few that scoffs at love.  There is a song and I’m not sure who the author of it is, but it talks about how we get back what we give.  In order to receive the love you want, you must first be willing to give…but that’s a topic for another day.  Take care of yourself and each other, remember, we’re all in this together!

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com

Aging Parents

Role Reversal

“I’ll do whatever it takes to return the love and care they provided for me, it’s the least I can do for my parents.” ~Unknown

Life is never neat and tidy.  Life is a messy plate of pasta with too many noodles to stay on the plate and too much marinara that dribbles over the edge and onto the floor.  Many of us grow up planning out what our life should look like if we follow a certain pathway when we follow our dreams.  But life isn’t always so agreeable and there may be a sudden and rapid need for flexibility in the time it takes to answer the phone.  As we all know, we live in a society where our population is getting older and living longer through better medical technology and higher quality of treatment.  I have a very close friend whose mother and father are both in their upper 80’s.  She is as spry as a spring chicken and he is dealing with cancer issues after 50 years of smoking unfiltered cigarettes and the medical treatments are causing him to struggle with his mobility and his quality of life.  My friend lives 5 hours away…his other siblings live all over the Midwest.  What do you do?

            The reality is that our population is growing older and is doing so on an unprecedented scale.  The economic impact of this aging population may never truly be fully understood but I’m talking about a more personal impact.  I’m talking about when one or both of your parents suddenly need help doing things that they have never needed help with in the past?  What I’m talking about is when the child has suddenly been thrust into the position as the caretaker of their parents.  Sarah Baldauf writes an excellent example of the suddenness of this possibility in the opening of her article for U.S. News:

“Few people gleefully anticipate the task of caring for an aging parent—but plenty seem to deny that it's coming. Sooner or later, avoidance can thrust adult children into the caregiver role with a shotgun start. A parent's slip in the bathroom or a collision caused by a mistake in the driver's seat can precipitate a deluge of anguished decisions and rapid changes you're not ready to handle. Suddenly, you could be scrambling to locate account numbers to pay Mom's bills while she's in the hospital, tangling with her insurance company to figure out why coverage for an X-ray was denied, and consulting with your brother—who lives three states away—about getting Mom into an assisted-living facility. You grapple with guilt because your mother never wanted to move out of her home, but now her condition leaves little choice. As the drama plays out, you're also trying to stay afloat at work and look after your other dependents, the kids.”

https://health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2007/11/02/15-things-you-can-do-to-keep-mom-and-dad-at-home

            The Process of caring for our parents can be a gradual process for some like for my friend or is can be a sudden emergency where one needs to put their life on hold and fly six states away to coordinate care from a hospital room in order to get your loved one back home.  Whatever the situation, the stress and guilt of the process can be overwhelming.  Dr. Nancy L. Snyderman, M.D. of AARP, discusses the very real condition of caregiver burnout.  Caring for family members, working full time and raising kids can put a person in a physical and emotional vice that can squeeze the life out of you.  Dr. Snyderman writes that it is ok to give yourself permission to seek help…help from a sibling or help from an outside agency.  Too many times, the adult child tries to take on too much and the ensuing aftermath can create havoc that effects relationships with others in the caregiver’s life.  The ability to reach out and ask for help is very difficult for many but to do otherwise can create more challenges and even endanger the loved one you’re caring for in the first place. 

            If you find yourself in the position of being the primary care taker for your parent and you find yourself being snowed under with burden of trying to do it all by yourself, help is available.  Home healthcare agencies like ours helps to keep people safe and independent for as long as possible before there is a transition to an extended care facility.  If you’re not sure of how it all works, call and talk to an agency and they will more than likely help you figure out what services you will need and how to pay for those services. 

            As the cold weather starts to abate a bit and a brief wash of warmer weather comes in for a few days, I hope everyone has a safe weekend.  Take care of yourself and each other, remember, we’re all in this together.

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com 

Empathy

“This Is Not A Drill!”

“Emergency Alert: BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.”

~Hawaii’s Erroneous Civil Defense Notification

            Saturday morning, a horrific accident took place in the State of Hawaii, a false alarm went out over the state’s emergency civil defense notification system telling people that there was a ballistic missile inbound for the state and for everyone to take immediate shelter.  For 38 minutes, our fellow Americans were not sure if they were experiencing the last moments of their lives or not.  It was 38 terrifying moments of people scrambling to find some kind of shelter against a possible thermonuclear disaster of unimaginable proportions.  What would you do?  What could you do?

            The Washington Post published an excellent narrative by writer Allison Wallis who lived through this moment in a perspective piece, Being a mother in Hawaii during 38 minutes of nuclear fear.  Allison writes of her experience with waking up to this alert and then trying to care for and comfort her young daughter all the while trying to reach her husband on the phone.  Imagine you believe you have only minutes to find safety for you and your child…how can anyone possibly prepare for that type and magnitude of fear?  I wholly encourage you to take time to read the article but be prepared to feel the anxiety and fear that can only be a shadow of how it really must have felt for those 38 minutes. 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/parenting/wp/2018/01/13/being-a-mother-in-hawaii-during-38-minutes-of-nuclear-threat-terror/?utm_term=.3b044722ec6f

            Empathy is a noun which is defined as the ability to understand and share the feelings of others.  Roger Ebert is quoted as saying, “I believe empathy is the most essential quality of civilization.”  Empathy for one another is one of the greatest human traits ever understood in the history of humanity because it gives us an ability to connect with our fellow humanity in acts of compassion that surpass all understanding.  We all react to things differently based on how we were raised and the experiences we had growing up but the ability to extend our feelings towards each other in empathy puts us all on a level playing field for humanity’s sake.  I confess I was moved as emotions stirred deep within me as I read the accounts of Allison during those few terrifying moments and her trying to comfort her child.  I have young children, I have people I care about, I have no earthly desire to see a nuclear holocaust strike any part of our planet…period.  How could I not feel the panic and fear she felt, how could I not wish to reach out a comforting hand and try in some manner to comfort not only her and her family but the entire state of Hawaii?

            As a nation, I feel we are losing our ability to be empathetic towards those who need understanding, towards those who need comforting and towards those who are just in need.  We are often quick to get out our checkbooks or open our wallets when a natural disaster strikes as we see wreckage where there was once a city.  In Hawaii, there is as much wreckage there today as if it had been hit by a tsunami, but this wreckage is emotional wreckage.  No buildings have been destroyed, no rouge wave has washed away the homes and lives of thousands of Hawaiians.  The wreckage lies deep within in the new-found terror and fear of the vulnerability they now face. 

            This whole event goes to underscore the importance of being prepared for all manner of disaster be it natural or man-made.  I ask you to read the article above and then have the challenging discussion with your family about what you can do to prepare for an emergency.  If you fail to plan, then you are planning to fail.  As the snow and freezing temperatures continue to fall today, please be careful and as always, take care of yourself and each other, remember, we’re all in this together.

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com 

Winter Storm Awareness

The White Death

“Prepare for the unknown by studying how others in the past have coped with the unforeseeable and the unpredictable.”  ~ General George S. Patton

            The quote by General Patton brings home the point that the best way to prepare for certain events is to learn from our previous experience and the experience of others.  As my father has often said over the course of my life, “Why re-invent the wheel?”  Two hundred years ago when a sever winter storm would descend on a region of the country and people would parish for lack of preparation and fore warning.  Today, with all the sophisticated technology available at our fingertips with weather apps for our smart phones or tablets and the various TV outlets that focus on nothing but the weather, there is almost no excuse for a person to be caught unaware of an upcoming sever weather event.  I’m not saying that unexpected things don’t happen, but what I am saying is that there is usually enough lead time for something like a sever winter storm for people to be prepare.

            There are dozens of websites that can help guide a person on how to prepare for all kinds of natural disasters.  From the Red Cross to the government’s FEMA website and there are guidelines for every type of natural disaster.  Today, many in our region are faced with dealing with a winter storm that could bring snow and ice which holds the potential to upend normal services like loss of power or to a lesser extent, the cancellation of school and other community events. The key to minimizing the potential for danger during hazardous conditions is simply planning ahead and being prepared.  Some people panic and run to their local grocer and buy a week’s worth of food for a 12-hour weather event.  Others panic and don’t do anything in hopes that the possible event will pass over head and miss them all together.  I would rather err on the side of going to the grocery store than do nothing but in both cases, the preparation for sever weather is incomplete on both accounts.

            The Red Cross website is an excellent source of information to read for preparing for hazardous weather.  I will share the link so that you may read all the information in detail, but I will just hit some of the highlights…

Right before a blizzard / winter storm…If you do nothing else:

·         Listen to local area radio, NOAA radio or TV stations for the latest information and updates.

·         Be prepared to evacuate if you lose power or heat and know your routes and destinations. Find a local emergency shelter.

·         Check emergency kit and replenish any items missing or in short supply, especially medications and medical supplies. Keep it nearby.

·         Be sure you have ample heating fuel.

·         If you have alternative heating sources, such as fireplaces, wood- or coal-burning stoves, or space heaters, be sure they are clean and in working order.

·         Check that your fire extinguisher(s) is in good working order, and replace it if necessary.

·         Bring your companion animals inside and ensure that your horses and livestock have blankets if appropriate and unimpeded access to shelter, food, and non-frozen water.

Staying Safe During a Winter Storm or Blizzard

·         Stay indoors and wear warm clothes. Layers of loose-fitting, lightweight, warm clothing will keep you warmer than a bulky sweater. If you feel too warm, remove layers to avoid sweating; if you feel chilled, add layers.

·         Listen to a local station on battery-powered radio or television or to NOAA Weather Radio for updated emergency information.

·         Move other animals to sheltered areas with a supply of non-frozen water. Most animal deaths in winter storms are caused by dehydration.

·         Eat regularly. Food provides the body with energy for producing its own heat.

·         Keep the body replenished with fluids to prevent dehydration. Drink liquids such as warm broth or juice. Avoid caffeine and alcohol. Caffeine, a stimulant, accelerates the symptoms of hypothermia. Alcohol, such as brandy, is a depressant and hastens the effects of cold on the body. Alcohol also slows circulation and can make you less aware of the effects of cold. Both caffeine and alcohol can cause dehydration.

·         Conserve fuel. Winter storms can last for several days, placing great demand on electric, gas, and other fuel distribution systems (fuel oil, propane, etc.). Lower the thermostat to 65° F (18° C) during the day and to 55° F (13° C) at night. Close off unused rooms, and stuff towels or rags in cracks under the doors. Cover the windows at night.

·         Check on relatives, neighbors, and friends, particularly if they are elderly or if they live alone.

After a Winter Storm

·         Continue listening to local news or a NOAA Weather Radio for updated information and instructions. Access to some parts of the community may be limited or roads may be blocked.

·         Help people who require special assistance—infants, elderly people, those without transportation, large families who may need additional help in an emergency situation, people with disabilities, and the people who care for them.

·         Avoid driving and other travel until conditions have improved.

·         Avoid overexertion. Heart attacks from shoveling heavy snow are a leading cause of death during the winter.

·         Check on your animals and ensure that their access to food and water is unimpeded by drifted snow, ice, or other obstacles.

·         If you are using a portable generator, take precautions against carbon monoxide poisoning, electrocution and fire.

Further information is available at:

 http://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/types-of-emergencies/winter-storm#About

I really encourage you to take time and read through all the various links on how to prepare and protect yourself and your loved ones.  I wish everyone a safe weekend as we head towards the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.  Take your time on the roads if you have to be out and remember to take care of yourself and each other, remember, we’re all in this together.

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com 

Attitude of Gratitude

Resolve to Change

“It is not happy people who are thankful.  It is thankful people who are happy.”  ~Unknown

            Two simple words, that when expressed from a sense of true and honest feelings, can help transform and transport the human spirit to an ethereal place of contentment, peace and happiness.  These two simple words are, “Thank You.”  The ability to express a feeling of gratitude in all aspects of life can lead to a pathway that is filled with a happiness.  In these uncertain times of political and economical upheaval and as the threat of global nuclear war seems to loom larger with every flippant tweet, our world seems to be drowning in a tsunami of negativity.  How can one person possibly stand up to this type of surge and still manage to wake up and face the challenges of each new day?  One answer to this perplexing problem is to develop and practice the ability to express one’s gratitude in as many ways as possible.  I’m not going to try and paint a portrait of life as seen through rose colored glasses but by training ourselves to be thankful for what we have and what life sends us, we can better withstand the negativity of the world.

            As we start out in the new year, many people I know wish to not only improve their physical self but their emotional self in 2018 as well.  Our ability to feel gratitude and express that gratitude has a profoundly positive benefit for not just our mental health but to our physical health too.  In a 2014 article written by Amy Morin, she extols seven different virtues of having an attitude of gratitude.  The first of these is that by expressing gratitude to the people around you, you are more likely to open the door to new relationships (friends) both personally and professionally.  Being thankful and having a heart of gratitude improves physical health as grateful people feel less aches and pains and are more likely to take care of their body.  Being grateful is good for your psychological health as people who express feelings of gratitude are less likely to feel the toxic emotions of envy, resentment and regret.  Having an attitude of gratitude also reduces feelings of aggression and enhances feelings of empathy making you a much better person all round to hang out with.  Grateful people also sleep better, have better self-esteem and have a higher level of mental toughness all because they feel thankful for what they have and who they are.  Kindness radiates from people who practice the life skill of gratitude because they seem to be in this happy place where they are just thankful for what they have instead of stressing out about what they don’t have.  I’m not saying that people who live by gratitude don’t have moments where they want something more, but I am saying that they won’t implode if they can’t get what they want right away.  They will just happily work towards their goal with a thankful heart until they get it.

            As we deal with the cold weather that is gripping many parts of the nation and as the east coast gets hit with a “cyclonic bomb” of winter weather, I will choose to be grateful that I have a warm coat to wear, a roof over my head and a bowl of warm soup on my table.  What will you be grateful for today?  Please make every effort to take care of yourself in these dangerous temperatures and look out for your neighbors too, remember, we’re all in this together.  Thank you.

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com 

End of Year Thoughts

Reflections & Courage

“The real man (woman) smiles in trouble, gathers strength in distress, and grows brave by reflection” ~Thomas Paine

“Reflective thinking turns experience into insight” ~John C. Maxwell

            As we look over the last vestiges of 2017 and see the looming largeness of 2018 before us it is human nature to look back this time of year and reflect upon the events that have led us to this point and time of our lives.  I am a big believer in quiet reflection as it allows us to develop a better understanding of the events that have gone on around us.  John Maxwell has it right when he wrote that reflective thinking helps us turn our experiences into insight and it is through this insight that we can gain the needed courage to face the challenges of tomorrow. 

            For the most part, I try and leave the politics of the world out of my post in hopes that my writing can be accepted as thoughts that might benefit the well-being of the community and its members as a whole.  With, this past year has brought about many changes to our local, national and global landscape and for many these changes have had or will soon bring dramatic changes into how people live.  The thought that comes to mind as I think about the previous year and the one that stands before us is that there will certainly be more changes to come and I’m not sure how those changes will affect us moving forward so the only and best advice I can hope to recommend is to hold fast.  Hold fast to all things that are good, hold fast to hope, hold fast to truth, compassion, kindness, patience and most of all, hold fast to love of self and each other.  The turbulent and stormy waters of our current society and the never ending rising tide of negative news that seems to swirl and eddy around us in ever gathering strength seems to be enough to drag us all down into a realm of despair and indifference towards humanity.  The term hold fast has different meanings to different people, The Scottish Clan MacLeod of the Isle of Skye have this term in the family seal meaning to be strong, be stubborn, to dig in and be strong.  I’m asking you to do the same, be strong and stubborn and hold fast to things that are good and edifying in life.  I’m an optimist by nature and I believe that even though things seem to be on uncertain footing, I believe in the goodness of people to seek justice in order to right the wrongs and help those who are helpless to help themselves.  Might doesn’t always mean right and I ask that as we reflect over the past year, we allow our strengths of love and kindness towards humanity shine through. 

            Charles Dickens put it well when he wrote in A Christmas Carol, the fit of anguish and regret as Marley's Ghost was despairing over "life's opportunities misused." Scrooge, trembling with fear and beginning to share in Marley's guilt, says: "But you were always a good man of business, Jacob." Upon which the Ghost cried out in anguish: “Business! Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were all my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”  As community members of the human race, the care and concern for all humanity should be our business each and every day and we should strive to make someone’s life a little better, a little more enriched through acts of love and kindness every single day.

            Today, as I reflect back on the last year and look forward towards the next, I will continue to make mankind my business and I hope you have the courage to do the same.  From all of us here at Best Home Care Services to all of you, have a very merry Christmas and a safe and prosperous New Year…take care of yourself and each other, remember, we’re all in this together!

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com 

Just a Thought

Seven Little Words

“To find out who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.” ~Voltaire

            Over the weekend, the Department of Health and Human services made a very pointed recommendation to one of the nation’s top healthcare agencies, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, commonly known as the CDC, over language that they are allowed to use when putting forth proposed budgets for future funding.  The seven words that have become highly discouraged are:

Diversity, Fetus, Transgender, Vulnerable, Entitlement, Science-based, & Evidence-based.

            A Department of Health and Human Services spokes person says that the seven words are not “banned” from use but are discouraged from use when submitting budget proposals.  Ok, one might think, what’s the big deal?  The doctors and scientist that have been working in laboratories for years to understand and develop SCIENCE BASED cures to various illness need to develop these cures based upon the EVEDENCE of the data they gather.  This data may help VURNERABLE populations like TRANSGENDER people or even an unborn FETUS.  By expanding those studies to a wider population based on ethnicity and gender, we could develop cures for a greater DIVERSITY of humanity.

            As a member of the healthcare community who is invested in reaching out and enriching the lives of others through better care and compassion, I am incensed and outraged by the assumption that the American health and medical community will accept this “suggestion” at face value.  In reading between the lines, the current administration is making a not so vailed threat to discontinue funding to important work if they feel it may help populations they feel don’t need help.  Why would a word such as “diversity” be such a threat to the current administration?  According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, diversity means the following: “…the condition of having or being composed of differing elements: a variety; especially: the inclusion of different types of people (such as people of different races or cultures) in a group or organization.”  How is being inclusive a bad thing?

            Medical research has its foundations in observing the evidence of the outcomes produced by the testing and retesting of experiments in order to find the best science based answers to the questions that face us every day.  Even in the dark ages, physicians learned by observing the effectiveness of their treatments, even if it was to use leeches to bleed evil spirits out of the afflicted!  The point is that the current administration is looking to disrupt current and future scientific health research by “suggesting” that certain language be omitted from budget proposals or face the consequences of potential loss of funding.  How does this help the people of the United States live a higher quality of life? 

            My hope is that we, as a country, can learn to work together for the continued benefit of future generations.  I am not so naive as to believe that we will all agree on the same path forward, but I do believe that we, as rational adults, can learn to listen and cooperate for a dialogue which leads to a path forward.  As we get closer to the Christmas Holiday, my hope is that everyone take time and enjoy family, friends and loved ones.  Take care of yourself and each other, remember, we’re all in this together.

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com 

Thank You

Gung Ho

“Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.  I am talking about a gung-ho attitude that says, ‘we can change things here, we can achieve awesome goals, we can be the best.’  Spare me the litany of the “realist”; give me the unrealistic aspirations of the optimist any day.”

~General Colin Powell

            The term “Gung Ho” means slightly different things to different people depending on the individual’s circumstances.  The term first came to the American vernacular in the early days of World War II when it became a working attitude of the Second Raider Battalion of the US Marines meaning to work together or in harmony together.  Today, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, it means: extremely or overly zealous or enthusiastic.  I believe this attitude has transformed from work together to overly enthusiastic as a result of the manner in which people use the word today based from the actions in which the Marine Raiders fought all those years ago.  Today, I would like to talk about the form of the phrase in the sense of working together for a common goal with great enthusiasm.  Today, I would like to take a moment and talk about my co-workers who day in and day out work together with great diligence and thought for not only our clients but for one another.

            We are a small office but the level of care and compassion my co-workers have for each other as well as our clients makes our office a fantastic environment for work, growth and comradery.  I’m not saying that we work in Shangri-La but I am saying that we work in a good place where we support each other in and out of the office.  I have worked in all kinds of different environments with all kinds of different mixes of personnel and I have to say that without a doubt, I am in a really good place today all because my co-workers have a spirit of gung-ho in their desire to reach our goals and objectives through teamwork.  As part of our regular business we, as an agency, are required to be surveyed but the State of Indiana on a regular basis as part of the requirements to maintain our state licensure.  All agencies in the state go through this process (as long as they want to stay in business) and because of the nature of the examination of records and procedures, this process always raises the level of anxiety within the office.  I say all this because this week we have had the pleasure of hosting a guest from the state as she reviews our business.  Working under a raised level of anxiety can cause people to react differently than they normally would and usually not for the better.  I say all this because I count myself lucky.  The women of my office have done a fabulous job of setting aside any anxiety they might have felt and they have performed to the highest level one could imagine, looking out for their own responsibilities as best they could but also lending a hand to their peers if needed.  The grit of an organization is a representation actions of its staff in a stressful situation and from what I’ve seen this week, the women in our office have what it takes…like they always have.

            I tip my hat to my co-workers and to all those who strive to make their work place run like Swiss clockwork.  A happy work place is a more productive work place, a place where people want to come and look forward to pushing forward towards a common goal.  I hope that everyone can find a place to work where they all have such a positive and pleasant attitude like me.  Have a great weekend and remember, take care of yourself and each other, we’re all in this together.

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com

Never Forget

The Day the Sky Went Quiet

“Never Forget” ~ September 11, 2001

            I’ll never forget, ever, standing in front of the television on that sunny Tuesday morning, watching in horror at the burning flames of the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City as United Airlines Flight 175 slammed into the South Tower at 9:03 am exploding into a bright ball of fire.  I was in shock.  My brain could not accept the images my eyes were sending it, what was going on and how could this have happened?  As order started to develop from the chaos of the day’s events, four airline flights had ended in tragedy and thousands of lives had been lost and countless other lives had been changed forever.

            The timeline of events is well documented now and can be read in full on a variety of websites but here is the abbreviated version courtesy of http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-timeline

• 7:59 am – American Airlines Flight 11, a Boeing 767 with 92 people aboard, takes off from Boston’s Logan International Airport en route to Los Angeles.

• 8:14 am – United Airlines Flight 175, a Boeing 767 with 65 people aboard, takes off from Boston; it is also headed to Los Angeles.

• 8:20 am – American Airlines Flight 77 takes off from Dulles International Airport outside of Washington, D.C. The Boeing 757 is headed to Los Angeles with 64 people aboard.

• 8:41 am – United Airlines Flight 93, a Boeing 757 with 44 people aboard, takes off from Newark International Airport en route to San Francisco. It had been scheduled to depart at 8:00 am, around the time of the other hijacked flights.

• 8:46 am – Mohammed Atta and the other hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 11 crash the plane into floors 93-99 of the North Tower of the World Trade Center, killing everyone on board and hundreds inside the building.

• 8:47 am – Within seconds, NYPD and FDNY forces dispatch units to the World Trade Center, while Port Authority Police Department officers on site begin immediate evacuation of the North Tower.

• 9:03 am – Hijackers crash United Airlines Flight 175 into floors 75-85 of the WTC’s South Tower, killing everyone on board and hundreds inside the building

• 9:37 am – Hijackers aboard Flight 77 crash the plane into the western façade of the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., killing 59 aboard the plane and 125 military and civilian personnel inside the building.

• 9:42 am – For the first time in history, the FAA grounds all flights over or bound for the continental United States. Some 3,300 commercial flights and 1,200 private planes are guided to airports in Canada and the United States over the next two-and-a-half hours.

• 9:59 am – The South Tower of the World Trade Center collapses.

• 10:07 am – After passengers and crew members aboard the hijacked Flight 93 contact friends and family and learn about the attacks in New York and Washington, they mount an attempt to retake the plane. In response, hijackers deliberately crash the plane into a field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, killing all 40 passengers and crew aboard.

• 10:28 am – The World Trade Center’s North Tower collapses, 102 minutes after being struck by Flight 11.

            On a day filled with heartache, sadness and rage, we as a nation, were once again blindsided by acts of hate and aggression.  I can remember my grandmother talking about the attack on Pearl Harbor and how it was a day that changed America…September 11th, 2001 would be the closest thing I think our generation would have that could even come close to that day of infamy as a catalyst for national unity.  I am writing about that fateful day sixteen years ago not to point out the political division that has occurred since but because our children who have been born since 2001 struggle to understand what an impact that day has had on our country moving forward.  Never forget became the mindset of a nation but as National Public Radio reports, “America's schools — where collective memory is shaped — are now full of students who never knew because they weren't alive then. Many teachers now struggle with whether and how to teach the attacks and their aftermath,” (Westervelt, 2017).  A shortage of material, understanding, desire and curriculum have created a vacuum in which our young people don’t understand what happened on that tragic morning.  More and more educators are seeking ways to include this in their curriculum as well as answer questions that students have in order to give understanding.  We as parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents, guardians, teachers, etc. need to talk to our youth and help them understand what happened that day.  It’s important to have a moment of silence to honor those who died during that moment of crisis but it is equally important that our kids know why.  As we move forward this week, I challenge you to discuss the events of 9/11 with a young person to get a point of view from their perspective and help them understand the importance of the day for all of us.  I also ask that you keep those affected by the recent hurricanes in your continued prayers and thoughts and seek to reach out as best you can…remember, we’re all in this together.

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com

Hurricane Season Part II

Irma, Jose, Katia and the Next

Hurricanes: Part II

             I’m sure by now everyone is just about saturated with information in regards to Hurricane Irma which has devastated several Caribbean islands with such ferocity that it will take years to recover.  Irma will more than likely turn that ferocity towards the United States over the weekend and bring a crushing blow to Florida before it makes its dying run up the I-75 corridor.  One question I’m sure many of you have is why?  Why all these storms so closely packed one right after another?  Well, according to the National Hurricane Center, the peak time for storms to roll off the coast of North Africa into the Atlantic Ocean is early September…right now.  The conditions are at their prime right now for these storms from Africa to pick up energy from the ocean and speed across the Atlantic to disperse that energy here in the western Atlantic. 

            The current conditions as I write this stands as such.  Irma should slam into Florida in the early hours of Sunday morning and run up the middle of the state then on into Georgia then the Tennessee valley by midweek…if the course predictions hold steady.  Jose has been upgraded to a category 4 hurricane with the probability of reaching category 5 status before it slams into the same islands that Irma just destroyed a few days ago.  The silver lining of all this is that due to the energy of Irma, Jose is predicted to curl out to the Atlantic…for now.  Katia has also been upgraded and is expected to make landfall on the shore of Eastern Mexico Saturday.  It’s the first time in seven years that the Atlantic basin has had three active hurricanes at once and if one looks at the satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean, there is the next storm off the coast of North Africa working to take shape. 

            What have we learned and what will we learn from these events?  It will take months to fully evaluate the devastation from Hurricane Harvey and who knows how long it will take Florida to recover from Irma but there are always lessons to be learned.  I am part of the Emergency Preparedness Team here at Best Homes Care Services, we have a plan in place that is in coordination with state and local authorities for emergencies of types.  On paper, it seems solid, but until that event occurs, there will always be variables of an unknown nature that we can learn from for the next event.  Each emergency event is unique in its nature and can be a challenge to prepare for but with repetition, agencies become better prepared for the next event. But with such destruction predicted, how will Florida respond?   I am sure that the various agencies in Florida are drawing upon years of knowledge of dealing with storms which should mitigate loss of life and aide in the return to normalcy.  But what will the average John Doe learn from this?  I hope that one thing we all can learn from this is the importance of being prepared.  I know I’ve been harping on this topic a lot over the past several months but time and time again there have been reasons to do so.  In the case of those in the storm’s path, a person could grab their Bug-out Bag (a minimum of three-day supply of food and water) and hit the road towards safety.  As it stands now, the store shelves are empty and there is a critical shortage of gas as the residence try desperately to move out of the storm’s path.

            Irma, itself, is currently wider than the Florida peninsula from the gulf coast to the Atlantic coast with the eye of the storm somewhere between 25 to 30 miles wide.  Even though there is a clam in the middle of the eye of the storm, the sustained winds are at their strongest surrounding the eye.  Currently, as a downgraded category 4 hurricane, Irma is still packing sustained winds of at least 130 to 156 mph.  That is like a tornado that is at least 50 miles wide moving along at a slow pace for hours on end…just frightening.  I hope everyone has a good weekend and enjoy our fall like weather but please continue to keep the storm victims in your thoughts and prayers, remember, we’re all in this together.  If you have it in your means to do so, there are literally dozens of ways of reaching out to those effected by the hurricanes, I encourage you to do so and be prepared as more storms head our way.

Wm Reid

Best Home Care Services

325 N Eastern Ave

Connersville, IN 47331

765-827-9833

wmreid@bhcshealth.com