My mother, Elaine, was the first love of my life. As a child, my life orbited around hers.
She was a spark plug, a firecracker, a spitfire, a dynamo. She loved to laugh — especially at herself — to dance, and above all else, she loved ice cream. At less than five feet tall, she was a force to be reckoned with.
After a horrible marriage to my father and a tumultuous divorce, she was left solely responsible for three broken children: two teenage sons and me—her ten year old daughter, so terribly shy and anxious. But Elaine was broken, too. Her instincts were to flee—and very often, she did. It was that experience of abandonment that made it difficult to forgive her. Ultimately I did, but some days were easier than others. And then, of course, the irony—as her caregiver—I needed to stay and endure.
Diagnosed first with mild cognitive impairment, then Alzheimer’s, her world now orbited around mine for the next eleven years. Like so many caregivers with complicated pasts, I showed up — for better or worse. I managed guilt, resentment, grief, overwhelm, and often anger. And yet the two things that persisted above all else were the deep love we had for each other, and the damn, unrelenting disease.
Elaine died on January 18, 2026. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever endured.
I share this to say: I SEE YOU.
You are stepping in to do some of the hardest work there is — not because you are a saint, or a martyr, but because she is your mother. Again, for better or worse. Some days you’ll feel like a hero while on others you’ll fall flat on your face. You are not perfect, nor should you expect to be. But you are there.
Welcome to a community you may never have planned to be a part of — but one that will hold you nonetheless. Though your mom may be patient number one, you are patient number two. Your well-being isn’t secondary.
My hope is that Maven Living gives you what I never had: a witness, a companion, and the tools to manage not just her symptoms, but your own survival.
Know that I am sending you everything I’ve learned, and everything I am, with the desire that it makes your caregiving journey a little less heavy.
Kristin Taylor, M.A.
Co-Founder & CEO, Maven Living
