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The women of the greatest generation

5/29/2019

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The women who came of age before and during World War II were a different breed -- or so it seemed to a Baby Boomer who was steeped in the feminist-atheist version of truth that has reigned in our culture since the '60s. Indeed, one of my biggest regrets is that I let Betty Friedan and her radical feminist comrades turn me away from thinking like what's expressed in the poem below, written in the 1940s by my mom (pictured above with my Granny, on a beach in beautiful Door County, Wisconsin). 

To think that I once scoffed at women who lived without benefit of Betty's "wisdom" and her husband-free, children-free, money-packed solution for a happy life. I don't think many have had as blessed a life as the women of my mother's generation.
 
LEGACY

My grandma was little,
Demure and blue-eyed,
She left me a message
The day that she died.
 
"To my only grandchild --
To lead a good life, 
You must be a lady,
You should be a wife.
 
"Be quick to request
But slow to command.
Wear your heart on your sleeve
and gloves on your hand.

"Two things you must have
But hide well," she wrote.
"A brain that is swift
And a starched petticoat."
 
And when I met you,
The world sang with the birds.
T'was then I remembered
My grandmother's words.
 
And it worked! She was right!
My grandmother knew!
I did as she said,
And I'm married to you!
 
-- Ethel Boehm Foth
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Will Great Grandma be homeless?

5/22/2019

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In this day of 24x7 news coverage, why are we so ill-informed about the things that matter? In particular, why are we clueless about the consequences of governmental policies that affect the most vulnerable Americans?
 
Consider, for example, all the recent talk about “Medicare for all.” Sounds great, doesn’t it? So what if so-and-so said that Medicare is headed for bankruptcy just a few years down the road? The government can just print more money, right? Modern Monetary Theory says that'll work just fine.
 
After all, if our most revered politicians aren’t worried about it, why should we be?
 
Here’s the short answer: Because there are unintended consequences to every policy the government implements. And each one can have a devastating impact on certain groups of people.
 
We’re about to see another example here in southeastern Wisconsin, as Linden Grove Communities prepares to shut down three of its four long-term-care facilities. The reason, according to a report in Skilled Nursing News? Annual losses of $5 to $7 million in Medicaid reimbursements, exacerbated by Obama-era reimbursement changes.  
 
“Though the shortfalls have been occurring for years,” SNN reports, “the stress accelerated in 2016 with the implementation of the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement Model (CJR), which shifted reimbursements for common hip and knee replacements to a bundled payment model that the hospital, doctors, and post-acute providers must share.”
 
Bottom line: In a drive to save money, the feds made some changes that will soon shutter these three facilities that, together, have been home to scores of elderly Americans. (The head count is unclear, but a check of Medicare's nursing-home rating site indicates that Linden Grove’s closures will mean a loss of 263 certified beds here in Waukesha County.)
 
How many more residents have already been, or will soon be, rendered at least temporarily homeless by this scheme?
 
Beats me. But the above-cited report also reveals that Wisconsin nursing-home providers typically lose an average of $71 to $79 a day on each Medicaid patient. In fact, Linden Grove’s residents are just the latest victims of Medicaid shortfalls; in Wisconsin, more than 30 other skilled-nursing facilities have closed their doors for the same reason, 10 of them in 2019 alone.
 
Makes you wonder what else our bureaucrats have up their sleeves. If "Medicare for all" becomes a reality, will even more elderly people pay the price?  
 
Wouldn't you think that some enterprising journalists would investigate the unintended consequences of such policies and help us become more informed voters? Granted, it’s complicated stuff, but I guarantee that there are still some supply-side economists around who could have predicted this particular outcome. And maybe they would care to comment on some of the other issues being so hotly debated today—issues that will impact how we care for our most defenseless populations in the years to come.
 
Is that expecting too much of modern journalists? Could be. And it’s further complicated by the fact that each state comes up with its own Medicaid reimbursements rules.
 
Still, if we’re concerned about who’s going to be taking care of Great Grandma in her twilight years—indeed, who’s going to be taking care of us down the road—we’d best start paying attention today. And we’d best vote for candidates who appear to have both a grasp of real-world economics and a concern for the elderly.    
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Of course they want to see you!

5/15/2019

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I can’t count the times I’ve pulled into the nursing home parking lot feeling quite sure that I had no business being there.
 
“They don’t want to see you,” hisses the little voice in my head. “They’ve got better things to do than visit with you. You’ll look like a fool traipsing around there looking for someone to talk with. Go home before it’s too late!”
 
The voice has always been most insistent when I show up for our monthly Christian Music Hour. That was especially true in the early years, when I arrived lugging boom box and CD case and enough hand-made songbooks for the 15 residents who gathered faithfully in the Activities room to sing or snooze or do a little of both.
 
Conditions have improved remarkably since then. These days, up to 50 residents and family members gather together to worship each month. We meet in the main dining room now, and hymns recorded by men like Tennessee Ernie Ford and Jim Nabors go out over fancy audio equipment. A wonderful volunteer preacher delivers a five-star Bible message while his children help other volunteers turn songbook pages and hand out gospel tracts.
 
Still, I sometimes hear a familiar warning when I make that final turn into the parking lot: “They’re just showing up as a favor to you. They don’t really want to be there. Go home!”
 
This voice speaks less frequently today, after almost two decades of visits and hymn sings. I’ve learned not to think about myself so much, I suppose, and to focus instead on serving the Lord Jesus Christ amongst those James mentioned in his epistle to the 12 tribes (1:27a): “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble.”
 
Our old folk are all orphans, and almost all are widows or widowers, and so I continue visiting. He is faithful and so I will be, too.
 
And almost invariably, I’m the one who is blessed. By the time I point my weary bones towards home, my heart is filled with joy that lasts until the next visit.
 
Please don’t let anyone – least of all that nasty little voice in your head – prevent you from visiting the elderly. You can make someone’s day simply by investing a little time, effort and love. And more often than not, he or she will make your day, too. 
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Guest Post: The ABCs of the Cross

5/8/2019

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Detail from Salvador Dali's "Christ of Saint John of the Cross," 1951
I am pleased once again to present the inspiring writing of my dear sister in Christ Edna Walls. The text below was published in a 2019 Resurrection Day brochure and is reproduced here with her gracious permission. To read her excellent article "The Value of Being a Widow," please click here. Or look for her lovely Christmas poem here.   
​
The ABCs of the Cross

For God so loved the world, 
that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in Him 
should not perish,
but have everlasting life.
--John 3:16
​
On the cross, Christ was:

Accused
Bruised
Crowned with thorns
Despised
Endured
Forgiving
Gracious
Holy/humble
Innocent
Justified
King/killed
Loving/Lamb
Maligned
Nailed
Obedient
Pierced
Qualified
Redeemed
Sinless/servant
Thirsty
Unselfish
Victorious
Whipped/willing
Xexalted/example
Ywhy?
Zthe Reazon 

Jesus came to restore what the man, Adam, had done through sin. "It is finished" was His cry and He died. The resurrection of Jesus is proof of God the Father's acceptance of His sacrifice. All authority is now given to the Lord, in heaven and on earth. He is now risen, He has risen indeed. Salvation is available to all who believe. Celebrate this day with humility and JOY!

Happy Resurrection Day to All! 
​(Sometimes known as Easter)

​--Edna Walls

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    Kitty
    Foth-Regner

    I'm a follower of Jesus Christ, a freelance copywriter, a nursing-home volunteer, and the author of books both in-process and published -- including
    Heaven Without Her.

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