My mom and dad live with my brother Doug, and I usually see my parents a few times a week. We'll go to the doctors' office or to a movie or out to eat or to the nail salon. My parents have entrusted me with their finances, and so I manage their money and their bills. I'm the oldest of their four. My mom is in late stage Alzheimer's, and last week it finally happened. She didn't know who I was. My sister-in-law Kim had to explain to her who I was and that I could be trusted to take care of her.
Doug took this picture of Mom yesterday - my sister came in for a little visit and all went out for lunch with an aunt and a cousin. Mom lives in the moment. She has no past she can remember, and I don't think she has a concept of the future. But she's pleasant. She may get confused and definitely needs help with daily tasks, which Kim does a fabulous job with. This picture captures her "in the moment" face.
In February my Chicago Modern Quilt Guild worked on art quiltl for the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative, a small grass-roots fundraising organization started by Ami Simms. The number of donated quilts is astounding - so many of us are being impacted by this disease. Medications are expensive and often trial-and-error. Funding is crucial for research and support. Here are the quilts made by my guild - notice that almost 10,000 quilts have been donated to this project. Overwhelming, isn't it?
2 comments:
What a lovely and loving tribute to your mother! You are so gracious as always about the changing relationship we all have as our parents age. Thank you.
That is an awesome picture! She looks great!
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