Life can throw a lot of unexpected curve balls at you, and you must be able to adapt to the changes that come your way – even if that means giving up your current lifestyle and profession. Former Hollywood actor Mark Steven Porro had to do such a thing, after his mother’s health began to decline and the hospice caregivers didn’t live up to the expectations he and his siblings had. Porro said he noticed that the house in which he grew up felt different when he went to visit his mother one day, and he noticed a lot of tension from the continuous situations that arose.
That’s when Porro, who originally lived – as he described – “a carefree bachelor’s life in Los Angeles,” switched roles and took on the duties of becoming his mother’s full-time caregiver.
“I became a first-time parent to, at that point, when I decided to move back and become the full-time caregiver, she was just turning 90 so that was my first kid.”
The journeys he experienced during this change in his life are chronicled in his book, “A Cup of Tea on the Commode,” which is now available for purchase anywhere books are sold. Porro had done some research on hospice care treatment before taking on his new role, but he also credits his experience as a designer and an actor for helping him adjust to this new life.
“It was like you're playing that role, so you jump in and play it. I still treat her like my mother and with respect and dignity and stuff. But now I was in charge and there were no lines that were not crossed.”
While he took on many roles to which he had not done prior, Porro said he did it without much hesitation, because he wanted to ensure his mother’s final years were good for her.
“I wanted to make my mother's last years as happy as they could be. And so that was easy to do. And then so once you commit to that, at least for me, I give it 100%. So, there were some difficult times, but there was so much joy in it to see the reaction and how happy she was.”
You can listen to the full interview by clicking on the audio clip above. A special thanks to Mark Steven Porro for taking the time to talk about his book, “A Cup of Tea on the Commode.”
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