Changing of Times

Daddy’s Story Through My Eyes

It has been quite some time since I’ve put anything on ‘paper’ but I’m going to give this a try, once again.

So much has changed in these last few years, where to begin.

My DADDY began having issues and neither Mother nor myself recognized what was happening, after all he was up in years! So no need to worry, right? Wrong. Daddy was in the stages of Alzheimer’s. The later stage I guess you’d call it. That began in 2013 when we really noticed, but little did we know it has been approaching for some time.

The SIGNS of this horrible disease, was and still is too little. The signs were there, if only we had known. Times when Mother would have to remember ow they drove to a place so she could help daddy get them back out. That was a sign. But just old age… NOT. It was a subtle sign. Ignored. Not knowing how to write a check or making sure the numbers were correct. I remember vividly one afternoon. Daddy always cut his yard and mine (I live across the street) and loved doing it, as it kept him active & as a young man and Daddy, he had done ‘a many a one’ to help support his family, so he knew how to cut yards & keep them up etc. This one day, I called mom and asked he if Daddy felt OK… why she asked… because he’s cutting the yard (backyard which is very small) all wrong. He’s cutting & throwing the grass into the flower beds that has just been mulched. She say, no… not that she knew of, so we both just figured it was an ‘Off’ day, once again, due to ‘age’. That’s when we began paying a little more and closer attention to the actions and saw that something was definitely wrong. Perhaps he had cancer again, or his heart needed attention again.

In Apr.il of 2013 we tricked daddy going for a ride and took him to the ER

….Back to writing this ….

That was the beginning of a discovery we knew nothing about and still there is little known things to alert the loved ones.

What’s ahead is devastating. For everyone, including the loved one your watching go down hill with no way to stop it, no way to tell them and understand that you’ll be there for them and you’ll love them forever and always.

Alzheimer’s Disease……

DADDY. Back to our story of Daddy….

WELL, I suppose this will have to wait until another time .yet again. but for now, perhaps someone, if only me will read and understand the trial and tribulations that have occurred over the last several years .. and that does not begin to touch the surface of my mother and I dealing with that and the other issues that tagged along and others that arose!

So until another post.another day. stay well.

George Carlin’s Views on Aging

 

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we’re kids? If you’re less than 10 years old, you’re so excited about aging that you think in fractions.
 
“How old are you?””I’m four and a half! “You’re never thirty-six and a half. You’re four and a half, going on five! That’s the key.
 
You get into your teens, now they can’t hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.
 
“How old are you?” “I’m gonna be 16!” You could be 13, but hey, you’re gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . You   become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony .YOU BECOME 21 YESSSS!!!
 
But then you   turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There’s no fun now, you’re Just a sour-dumpling. What’s wrong? What’s changed?
 
You BECOME  21, you TURN 30, then you’re PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it’s all slipping away. Before you know it, you  REACH 50 and your dreams are gone.
 
But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn’t think you would!
 
So you  BECOME 21,
                     TURN 30,
                     PUSH 40,
                  REACH 50,
                  and MAKE it to 60.
 
You’ve built up so much speed that you HIT 70!
After that it’s a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!
 
You get into your 80’s and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime.
And it doesn’t end there. Into the 90’s, you start going backwards; “I Was JUST 92.”
 
Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. “I’m 100 and a half!” May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!
 
HOW TO STAY YOUNG
 
  1. Throw out nonessential numbers.This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay “them.”
 
  2. Keep only cheerful friends.The grouches pull you down.
 
  3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. “An idle mind is the devil’s workshop” And the devil’s name is  Alzheimer’s.
 
  4. Enjoy the simple things.
 
  5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.
 
  6.The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.
 
  7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it’s family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.
 
  8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.
 
  9. Don’t take guilt trips.Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.
 
10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.
 
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,
but by the moments that take our breath away.
 
And if you don’t send this to at least 8 people- who cares?
But do share this with someone.

We all need to live life to its fullest each day!!
 

george-carlin-1
 
RIP 1937-2008

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