I haven’t posted much about my dad lately because…there hasn’t been a lot of good news to share. He was “released” from one of his respite care programs due to problem behavior, which created a domino effect. We always knew that when the respite care stopped, Dad would need to be in a more “structured” environment (ahem, locked down).
My siblings and I have struggled with the balance of keeping Dad happy and active, yet keeping him safe, too. After the last escape, when the police found him thirty minutes away, after he had hopped into strangers’ cars, we knew that priority had changed. Keeping him safe has become more important than keeping him happy and active.
So, the time has come for a move. In two weeks, Dad will be living in a beautiful Alzheimer’s facility. The other day, I took him for an assessment and was ready to sign myself in! It’s that nice!
Dad has been declining quite a bit–he hasn’t used my name in months. But in church on Sunday, when everyone stood to say the Lord’s Prayer, he repeated it by memory, word for word.
The human brain (or is it the soul?) is just amazing.
Sorry that things are deteriorating. It’s no fun to watch a parent’s decline. I just posted about this a day or so ago as my mom is quickly going downhill.
It has always fascinated me, too, the way folks can remember things they memorized from years past even when they lose other memories.
It’s a tough time for sure. I remember taking my aunt to our family reunion way out in the boon docks!! She was well into her fight with this dreaful disease and she gave me turn by turn directions! I was shocked, as she didn’t even know who I was. My dad had events happen much the same. Your heart leaps to tell you, “just maybe they aren’t ill after all”. But then the reality of life comes roaring back and you realize that you are once again, drawn to your knees. God Bless you, my friend.