This morning I flipped the calendar to a new month. November how did you get here so quickly? In this month we celebrate birthdays (my dog's 2nd and my son's 17th), eat turkey, and let's be sure to mention a very important election in 4 days. No matter who is elected, I'm preparing myself for the complaining and protesting from the opposing side. I'm reminding myself to focus on faith, remembering that God is in control and He has a plan. November will be a month when I open up my Bible more and pray intentionally and consistently.
November is also Alzheimer's Awareness month. I began working at a nursing home my senior year of high school. That was my first experience of witnessing what Alzheimer's looks like first hand. I remember walking the hallway of the second floor delivering a cart filled with food for the nurses to give to the residents. Each wing had a locked door so none of the residents could escape if they left their rooms. The doors had a small glass window. I very clearly remember looking over at one of the door's and on the other side was an old woman's face staring in my direction with blankness in her eyes. That image has been etched in my mind since. Now here I am, watching as my own mother is battling this cruel disease. Years before the diagnoses she had a stroke that took away her ability to walk, speak clearly and be on her own. My father, having been newly retired at the time, was already struggling as a caregiver to her. Then we noticed she was repeating herself and becoming very forgetful. When I heard the doctor diagnosed her with the ugly A word I knew it was time to prepare my heart for witnessing the woman who brought me into the world slowly lose herself. It has been hard. It has been even harder for my father.
