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    Ladysitting: My Year with Nana at the End of Her Century
    Ladysitting: My Year with Nana at the End of Her Century
    Ladysitting: My Year with Nana at the End of Her Century
    Audiobook7 hours

    Ladysitting: My Year with Nana at the End of Her Century

    Written by Lorene Cary

    Narrated by Lorene Cary

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Lorene Cary's grandmother moves in, and everything changes: day-to-day life, family relationships, the Nana she knew-even their shared past.

    From cherished memories of weekends she spent as a child with her indulgent Nana to the reality of the year she spent "ladysitting" her now frail grandmother, Lorene Cary journeys through stories of their time together and five generations of their African American family. Brilliantly weaving a narrative of her relationship with Nana-a fierce, stubborn, and independent woman, who managed a business until she was 100-Cary looks at Nana's impulse to control people and fate, from the early death of her mother and oppression in the Jim Crow South to living on her own in her New Jersey home.

    Cary knew there might be some reckonings to come. Nana was a force: Her obstinacy could come out in unanticipated ways-secretly getting a driver's license to show up her husband, carrying on a longtime feud with Cary's father. But Nana could also be devoted: to Nana's father, to black causes, and-Cary had thought-to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Facing the inevitable end raises tensions, with Cary drawing on her spirituality and Nana consoling herself with late-night sweets. When Nana doubts Cary's dedication, Cary must go deeper into understanding this complicated woman.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHighbridge Company
    Release dateMay 7, 2019
    ISBN9781684570577
    Ladysitting: My Year with Nana at the End of Her Century

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    • 4/5
      Ladysitting takes place during the last year of Lorene Cary’s Nana’s life, when health issues required Nana to move from her house in New Jersey to Cary’s family home in Philadelphia.Nana had worked so hard to hold on to the ways we know ourselves as adults: we breathe on our own, toilet ourselves, move about of our own volition, communicate with others, fix and eat food, handle money, live where we choose. She’d been struggling each day to succeed.In one night she’d lost it all. (p. 30)Lorene and her Nana were close; they spent most weekends together during Lorene’s childhood. Still, sensitively negotiating Nana’s changing care needs proved to be a considerable challenge. Lorene had her career as an author, professor, and found of the Art Sanctuary, an organization focused on fostering and promoting black art through programs and performances. Lorene’s husband Bob was an Episcopal clergyman, which also made demands on Lorene, as did her role as mother to two daughters on the cusp of adulthood.Nana moved into a room in the Rectory, fully equipped with a hospital bed. Several other adjustments were made in the home to facilitate her care. The rhythms of church life provided routine and solace for Nana. Initially, Nana received hospice care, but when her condition improved nurses were hired to spend time with her each day. Throughout this memoir Lorene and her family weather the ups and downs, as does Nana who refuses to go gentle into that good night. Anyone who has cared for an aging relative will be able to relate to Lorene’s story. The narrative rambled a bit at times, but I think it was also reflective of the challenges Cary faced in trying to manage all aspects of her life while simultaneously dealing with the hugely disruptive process of caregiving, and the varied emotional responses of other relatives.