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Get a tissue. I’m crying, and you can join me.

Caregiving teaches you a new language—one that doesn’t always happen with words. It’s in the way you tuck a blanket around their legs. It’s also in the way their hand finds yours without looking. Or it’s in the unspoken gratitude in a quiet moment. But sometimes, just when you think words are lost, they find a way back in the most unexpected way.

My mother doesn’t always say things the way she wants or means to. (Do any of us, really?) Thoughts get jumbled, emotions tangle, and words slip away before they ever make it to her lips. The other day, she handed me a note that she had clipped from an article she was reading. As she gave it to me, she said, “This is from God, but it’s also how I feel about you. Even if I don’t always say it right.”

I couldn’t read it in front of her because I knew I’d cry. Sometimes emotions are so hard to show when you’re in the thick of it. I’ve been pretty emotional lately, and I didn’t want her to think that she made me sad.

Later …I read the words slowly, letting them settle deep:

My Beloved Child…

I love you more than you can imagine. Wherever you are, and whatever you are going through, always know that I am there with you. When you talk to Me, I will listen. And when you feel fear, I will protect you.

Before I even created the world, I knew you—who you are and who you will become—and I have an amazing plan for your future. I sent My Son, Jesus, to die for you. More than anything, I want you to know Me, and I want to be a part of your life. Every single moment.

Even when you stumble, I still love you. Even when you fall, I still care. No matter what you have done or how broken you feel, I can heal your pain. You are not unfixable or irredeemable, because I am the Redeemer, and I make all things new.

I am on your side… and I will never leave you or forsake you—NEVER! You are My child, the one I adore.

– God

(Rom. 5:8, 8:38-39; Jer. 1:5, 9:24, 29:11; John 3:16; 1 John 1:9, 4:9-11; Isa. 43:19; Deut. 31:6-8)

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I swallowed the lump in my throat. In that moment, I knew—this was her way of telling me what her heart has been feeling all along. Even when she struggles to express it, the love is there. It always has been. It’s incredibly hard to reverse roles with your parent. It’s humbling and soul crushing and you feel all alone.

Sometimes, we expect love to sound a certain way. We want it spoken in clear, coherent sentences. It should be wrapped up in a perfect “thank you” or “I love you.” But love isn’t always verbal. Sometimes, it’s in a squeeze of the hand, a familiar look, or today, a note cut from a book.

If you’re a caregiver, you know the silence or repetition that lingers in long days. You know the frustration of trying to understand what they need when words or thoughts fail them. But don’t miss the messages that come in other ways. They’re still there. In the smallest gestures, the familiar smiles, and even the notes, pictures or flowers they press into your palm.

Even when words fail, love finds a way to speak. And when it does, listen. Because those moments—though fleeting—are everything.

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Caregiver Hack of the Week

When words fail, write it down. If your loved one struggles to communicate, encourage them to write (or type) their thoughts. If that’s not possible, try using pictures, simple hand gestures, or even playing familiar music to help spark connection. Sometimes, the heart speaks in ways that the voice cannot – and it is precious.