Dementia is draining Sweeties memories.

Like fallen leaves, her memories are gone.

We have a globe willow in our front yard and in the fall, it doesn't loose it leaves slowly, like a elm or an oak, it drops all it's leaves in one or two days. What you see here is one day of leaf dropping from our tree. I thought it as a visual of the way Dementia is draining Sweeties memories. As if each leaf was a memory, they are now gone. What few are left, don't make up much and the threads that are holding them together is becoming thinner and weaker. 

Our walks seem to be helping her. She seems stronger and that is good. We've been out to the golf course 3 days this week and she has marched right along. Of course there is the constant encouragement that I am feeding her as we go. When we stop and have something to drink, I've come up with the phase for her to take a "big drink". If I don't she just takes a sip and that won't help her at all. 

The difference from when we started back to playing golf to now. In the beginning, she knew something of the game, she would, for example, know about holding the flag, when to remove it, and when to put it back. Now she just stands next to my clubs until I putt out. As of now, I'm just happy she can walk the course with me and not have a break down and want to go "home". 

It seems that we have got a good routine going now. When she gets up, I head her to the potty, then CBD, and breakfast. Outside is nice. No distractions, and she will eat her cereal without too much prodding. I put half a banana in her bowel, and I get the other half, and she will look at my bowel as we eat, as if to make sure we have the same thing and how I'm eating it. I've learned to slow down to her pace. If I get done too soon before her, she wants to stop, no matter how much she has eaten. 

Had a pleasant surprise last night, a phone call from her son. Maybe it was an answer to prayer. He just called to talk about some music he was listening to, Pink Floyd, and we talked for awhile. It was nice because I was thinking how little the kids seem to be concerned about us. I'll take it as an Easter Egg. 

I've said this before, Easter Eggs are best discovered the next day. That is what my Driver has told me. The hand of Providence is an invisible one while it is working, and to know that it has been working is to see it from the work it has done. Driver is like that, as we drive down the Road to Dementia Town, He'll ask me if I saw this sign, or that flower on the side of the road, and of course, I didn't. Yet, when we come to the end of the day, I can see it in my minds eye. It will only take a nudge and the Easter Eggs come into focus. My Driver is well aware on how much I am concentrating on the present and will miss the good stuff when it happens. I get many nudges when I write to you about my days. Thank You for the nudging. But it is time for me and Driver to get going on another adventure as we Drive down the Road to Dementia Town. Keeping our Shiny Side Up. I hope that you don't miss the flowers on your drive, as you Keep Your Shiny Side Up, too. Love Ya, and God Bless.