Today, December 16th, would have been Ludwig von Beethoven’s 245th birthday, and so the radio has been playing beautiful pieces of his music all day long.  It is a fitting day to begin my blog about my time at home as a caregiver for my elderly mother as we both adore classical music.  How much pleasure it gives my 88-year-old mother to listen to his symphonies and piano concertos! In a while, we will watch the movie, “Immortal Beloved,” and although I will have to explain to her what is going on, it has become an annual ritual for us to sit on the couch and cry together.

It doesn’t matter to us that the story may be a fabrication of a possible event in the composer’s life, we enjoy it immensely. What does matter is that at a time when Mom and I cannot take part in some of the same pastimes…