We are all carers

At some point in our lives most of us will either need care or have the responsibility of caring for another.

Millions of carers the world over – men, women, children, paid or unpaid – care for family members, friends and clients, young and old. The majority of carers are not in paid employment, working inside their own homes, supporting a family member or friend, they remain largely unseen and undervalued. Paid carers support elders, or anyone who lives with a chronic, progressive or mental-ill-heath condition in their own home, day care or residential setting.

Though a vital service for humanity, care remains misunderstood, under-valued and rarely given the credit and attention it deserves.

To truly care for another is a precious and enriching way to be of service to humanity. It is a privilege to care for someone. To walk beside another through many hours, weeks, months and years of need, deteriorating health, pain, various struggles, challenges and sometimes to end of life. This is the service provided by carers and the worth of this is to be treasured and greatly appreciated.

Care – a gateway that deepens our relationship with ourselves and another.

When we care for another, we are called to observe, connect, listen, respond, be attentive, and never impose on them. In this relationship, client and carer are equals – no one better or less than. One person lovingly supports another for no other reason than because it is their responsibility to do so. The person receiving care also has a responsibility to accept (or not) the offering of truly loving care. Care teaches us that we never care for one person, we care for everyone through one. We closely collaborate with families, friends, healthcare providers, medical practitioners and local communities and work as a unit of one, supporting the person in need of care, and each other.

Care is not restricted to what we provide people in ill-health or dying, it is a loving and limitless quality brought to all relationships: colleagues, friends, neighbours and community we live in.

Equally, care is not only what we offer other people, it is also for ourselves and self-care is foundational to truly caring for another. How we live and care for our bodies, what we eat, our homes, our cars, everything we do reflects the depth of love and care we have for ourselves. Nothing is left out.

A Carers Journal is a collection of articles based on the lived experiences, observations and reflections of carers working across different settings. Their writings reveal and share the joy, beauty and adventure of caring for another. For them, to care for and nurture another is exquisite and transformative for both carer and cared for.

These articles show us that caring for another is not burdensome, tedious, or exhausting, it is enriching, joyous and revitalising.

‘With God’s immeasurable love, I live and serve, and its purpose is my way of livingness’’
Serge Benhayon, There is a Field of Immeasurable Love.