Organizing Breakdown

Yesterday I spent a few hours with my parents at their place, helping my mother to organize photos. We visited a bit beforehand, and except that she just can’t remember the date, she seemed fairly with it and normal.

Until I saw her scrapbooking table. My mother, who has always been an organized person, was at a loss. Her table was covered with photos that she couldn’t seem to categorize. Photos were mixed in memorabilia (ticket stubs, programs and such) and embellishments (decorative items to dress up photo album pages). Clearly she was trying to do too much at once, and didn’t have a plan in mind.

I helped her separate everything and organize it. Although she seemed grateful, she also seemed perplexed, as if she wasn’t sure of the need for organization. I’m unsure as to the cause of that. I suggested she work on one group of photos at a time but I honestly don’t know if that registered.

I am forming a plan for my mother and the organization of all her photos. Yesterday’s visit was mostly to evaluate the situation. The most important things I gleaned were 1) the plan must be flexible 2) there must always be some interesting and realistically accomplishable task to keep my mother engaged. She doesn’t need to be overwhelmed.

It was an exhausting day, but I’m looking forward to next time.