The Cycle of Life?

My book club just finished dissecting Sue Miller's "The Senator's Wife". It was a good read and led to a lively discussion. One part that really struck home for me was when the protagonist, an independent, self-reliant woman in her 70s ruminated on adult children eventually taking over the lives of their elders. How the parent essentially is forced to become the child, prevented from making decisions or thought to no longer have sound judgment. When it became necessary for me to make decisions for my father, I wonder how he perceived it? How does he perceive it still?