Grace Under Fire

The Blushing Hostess Entertains is honoring Jackie Kennedy Onassis' birthday (she would have been 80 now) by asking readers to share their stories of grace. Please go to this site to read the stories, poems, memories, and pictures that are being shared.




I am shortening a very long story into just a few sentences for this post.

Grace ~ the exercise of love, kindness, mercy, favor; the disposition to benefit or serve another.

My mother was a woman of grace, poise, refinement and dignity. Unfortunately a little of her polish was lost to Alzheimer's Disease in her last years of life. My Mom spent her last fourteen months within the confines of a nursing home, where other gracious women were in charge of her care. These nurses' aides treated my mother with the utmost respect despite my mother's tantrums and outbursts. These women acted as her guardians and protectors. At the risk of losing their jobs, these women reported an abuse they witnessed perpetrated on my mother by a Licensed Practical Nurse. These women were not supported by their superiors, in fact, they were denigrated and belittled. They were told they were "foreigners and didn't really understand the meaning of the word 'pushed'". They were transferred off of the Dementia Ward because they had felt a duty to my mother and informed the family of what they had witnessed, as Administration was trying to cover up this abuse. These women took a great risk in the interest of safeguarding my mother and the other patients that they felt a responsibility for on their ward. I will forever be in their debt for their acts of bravery. These women acted with the utmost grace under fire.


Below are just a few photos that also suggest to me the personification of grace:

Happy Birthday, Jackie!