Weddings are always rich in symbolism, but one I attended on a sunny afternoon recently carried far more than usual.
Things I think: Sunshine’s dream
By
Gary Tetz
Nov 01, 2012
Margaret was just one of those people. She always wore a smile and a bright yellow sweater, and staff and residents at her assisted living community called her “Sunshine.”
The wisdom of age
By
Gary Tetz
Jan 06, 2017
It’s like a dash of smelling salts under the nose. Talking to actual long-term care residents always affects me like that: an abrupt awakening from the fog and unconsciousness of stress, distraction...
Things I Think: The lessons of autumn
By
Gary Tetz
Dec 05, 2019
Autumn is a time of change. That probably seems trite and obvious, and certainly it’s a trait shared by all the seasons, at least where I live in the Pacific Northwest. But the transitions of fall always...
Shock ’em with action
By
Gary Tetz
Mar 01, 2014
On a scale of A to 17, with one being “Always” and red being “Parsnips,” how would you rate your experience with customer satisfaction surveys? I’m sure most of you use them,...
The ‘I’ in Toxic Team
By
Gary Tetz
Dec 06, 2017
Have you ever been a member of a Toxic Team in long-term care? Where you’re always watching your back, thinking you’re a martyr, wondering what so-and-so meant when he or she said this or that,...
Our deeper reservoir
By
Gary Tetz
Apr 01, 2020
I’m not an epidemiologist. Or a doctor. Or a calming Zen master, pastor, rabbi or priest. Unfortunately, I can’t create lifesaving vaccines in my garage, or turn my CPAP machine into an improvised...
Waiting for a pellet
By
Gary Tetz
Jun 06, 2016
From now on when I ponder the future of long-term care, I’ll think about Uncle Jimmy.
There’s no time to cry
By
Gary Tetz
Oct 01, 2021
If you’re close to my aging vintage, you remember those adorable pioneers on the TV show “Little House on the Prairie.” Now we’re living in their world. Menaced by fires, floods, climate change...
When it matters most
By
Gary Tetz
Jun 01, 2013
Pondering difficult end-of-life situations made me think, naturally, of Chevy Chase.