Caregiver Stories

Joseph Turns the Wheels of Compassion

It began with a promise: that I would be there, no matter what. When she came into my care—Canadian, quiet, resilient yet forever changed by the accident that left her confined to a wheelchair—I didn’t know then how close we’d grow, nor how deeply our lives would intertwine.

I learned, over time, that sometimes the people we care for don’t remain clients—they become family. And suddenly, it’s only in their absence you realize just how much they’ve become a part of you. I pray that wherever she is now, may her soul rest in peace. I often cry alone because she became part of me in ways I never expected—sometimes the people we care for become family, and it hits us that way only when they’re gone.

Many times she’d lash out, saying every harsh thing she felt—but beneath those words, I felt her pain. I understood that waking up one day and being told you’ll never walk again—it’s a heartbreak no one should bear.

My heart ached every time she cried. I made sure I was there—always. It surprised people that a male caregiver and a female client could be so close, but we just laughed like we were family. We shared everything until the day she asked me to return home—to say hello to my family.

Looking back, I feel she might have known she was slipping away and wanted to spare me seeing her suffer.
I regret that I had to leave sometimes—but the truth is, she’s gone now. Our dog, our daily rhythms… they all faded into memory. It feels like I woke up from a dream to find only the echo of what was real.

We used to go to the beach by Atlantis Hotel in Dubai—just her, me, and the dog, laughing at the waves. Nights filled with dinner, aimless drives because sleep eluded us, storytelling about her childhood, my days in Africa. We planned trips between our homelands, but those dreams vanished too.

Now all that remains are the quiet, sacred memories I carry forward.

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