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Here are some things experts say children can do to assist aging parents. They can evaluate their need for things like grooming, cooking, and transportation. They can evaluate their resources, like savings, or pensions; help them apply for services or gather documents. They can help them decide if they need long-term care. Help simplify things for living at home. As much as possible, let them make their own decisions. Joseph showed compassion for his aging father, Jacob. When his brothers came to Egypt to buy food, Joseph, whom they had sold as a slave 20 years earlier, was the prime minister. On their second trip, he revealed himself to them, and then sent for his father. We learn from Genesis 46, that when his father arrived, Joseph fell on his neck and wept. He introduced his father to Pharaoh. Pharaoh, in turn, offered them the best of Egypt. He told Joseph to choose any place in the entire land for them to live. Joseph used his position and resources to take care of his father. Of course, not every child can do for parents all that Joseph did for his father. But all children should recognize a duty to parents; we should do all we can to honor and assist them. After all, they brought us into the world, and with few exceptions, nurtured us to adulthood.
