A Message from Our Past President

The phrase “new normal” is one that we are all hearing a lot about these days. It is meant to identify the significant, and seemingly permanent, changes that most of us have had to adapt to as part of the fallout of the recent pandemic. Now, toward the end of a second year where the COVID-19 virus has taken center stage, we believe we are seeing an end to the sacred old ways of doing things and are attempting to address head-on the new way we need to work, live, and play.

However, I think the concept of a “new normal" is a misleading one as it implies a sameness from life that just isn’t reality. Sure, we have had to adapt to mask-wearing/not wearing, changes in availability of services and resources, and even some improvements such as the increased ability for many to work from home and less traffic during rush hour. Without a doubt these are noticeable and far-reaching changes. But life itself has always been about change – change, adaptation, and resilience that challenge us every day.

If we stop to think about why we do what we do, why we provide the services and support that each of us offer older adults and their families, we do it to help them change, adapt, and build resilience to their own significant changes, milestones, and unexpected events in life. And, if we are lucky, we ourselves will have the opportunity to live long enough to face some of those same challenges as we age.

As comedienne Gilda Radner said as she faced her own significant challenge, “…Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next. Delicious Ambiguity.”

Change and uncertainty have always been life's norm, and we are all fortunate to be able to help our clients, and each other, face the challenges it brings.