#nell lake

[hannahdrossman]

1 of 2 for Boston Globe Ideas, “Compensating the kindness of strangers: Paid caregivers are too often ignored” by Nell Lake. #BostonGlobe

[guernicamag]

Only five others have gathered today, three women and two men, all of them caring for family members with chronic illnesses. Claire is younger than the rest, forty-eight, a divorced single mother, tall and slender, with shoulder-length dark hair. She takes a seat at the table, in a windowless conference room at a community hospital. When her turn comes around, she speaks of grieving the loss of her mother—who is still living, and whom, until recently, Claire has been visiting nearly every day. “Her doctor told me,” Claire says, looking around at the sympathetic faces, “that I’m just going to have to separate myself emotionally.” She grimaces, fighting tears. “You can see what a great job I’m doing!”

Caregiving in the Age of Long Decline by Nell Lake - Guernica / A Magazine of Art & Politics