This past year, my husband and I have had a theme in our movie watching, senior living, and we’re not talking about high school seniors. As a hospice chaplain, he visits many seniors in their homes, assisted living facilities, skilled nursing facilities, long-term care facilities, and a variety of healthcare communities.Surprisingly, there are more movies on this topic than I would have ever expected. Beside some of the silly, raunchy, somewhat absurd films, which we skip entirely, there are some very thoughtful, heartwarming, and inspiring movies where senior citizens are seen as the strong, intelligent, resourceful, and caring individuals found in life.During our film quest, we also stumbled upon an insightful, thoughtful, compassionate, and entertaining miniseries, Netflix’s “The Inside Man.” Skeptical at first because we’re not Ted Danson fans, we found ourselves binge-watching it on the weekend, wanting to see more.Still, many of the films sadly and tragically reveal what is taking place in the real world, with some adult children hijacking their parents’ futures to accommodate their own lifestyles, more concerned with their own convenience, comfort, goals, plans, and, yes, even inheritances, lacking sensitivity and overlooking the real well-being of their parents.A Little Consideration, PleaseIn life, we’re wise to keep Ephesians 6:2-3 at the forefront of our considerations: “’Honor your father and mother’—which is the first commandment with a promise—so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”Although adult children may seem well-meaning in presenting their plan to their parents as only looking out for their welfare, if their parents are truly their priority, they will consider more how they can help facilitate and maintain their parents’ friendships and comforts throughout their senior years rather than fit them into what works best with their own plans and schedules.Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/monkeybusinessimages
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