Alzheimer's Disease is a thief who robs one of the most precious treasures of life.....memories. Some of the reasons we can see hope for tomorrow is because we remember a similar situation we were in and that we could solve it. Without memories - we can't remember our parents, our siblings, our spouses, even our children and grand-children. Without memories "life" just becomes an empty shell. Even our faith is sometimes cruelly robbed by Alzheimer's. I knew a lady who was deeply religious and read from the Bible daily. I visited her often because her children didn't visit her. One day she just said "I love....I love....oh, I can't remember his name". But she had her Bible close to her and pointed angrily at it - "him!" "Jesus?" "Yes, that's his name. I love Jesus". I wanted to cry (but didn't want her to see me that way)....what a cruel trick Alzheimer's had played on her....it even robbed her of her faith and that was all she had to lean on. But I had NO DOUBTS in my my mind.....she loved Jesus and He loved her!
Today I heard the news that country singer/composer Glen Campbell has Alzheimer's and he is doing one last tour before retiring. I never cared for his music or his songs (it just isn't my style of music)....but I feel badly for anyone who has Alzheimer's....and their family as well.....so the first thing I did was pray for him and his family.
I've never tried drugs and certainly at my age have no desire to try them.....but from what I've read of people who took LSD....they went into a "Alice in Wonder World" where everything was exaggerated or spinning or dizzy.....and it makes me wonder if the minds of those with Alzheimer's go into a similar dismal abyss where they have no control. We can never know what goes on within an Alzheimer's patient's mind.....we can see brain images but that only tells us what stage the disease is in. It doesn't tell us what they think or what they struggle with.
I knew a brilliant physics professor who had written numerous books on physics. He developed Alzheimer's and when I found out he was moved to a facility close to where I lived, I went to visit him. I did not expect him to remember me (we were friends, he was never my professor); he didn't. But I had heard one of his lectures on video.....BRILLIANT man!.....and the man who sat before me crying and drooling was not the same man. Since his children didn't visit him, I liked to visit him often and did so until the day he was no more on this earth. Sometimes I could just sit quietly with him and hold his hand. Sometimes he recoiled and did not want anyone to touch him. A few times he said a word, usually just "water" (but pronounced more like "wawa"). I'd go and get him a cup of water and would hold it for him to drink, but he didn't want to drink it. Sadly, I think that "water" was the only word he had remembered. He didn't know it, but every time I held his hand I prayed for God to please release him from this horrible prison. I do not judge his children for not visiting. Perhaps it was unbearable for them to see their once healthy, intelligent, loving Dad in such a state. I would leave the nursing home with a little anger in my heart. Why did such a brilliant man have to be robbed of his dignity, his spirit, his humour, his intelligence, his great love for humanity?? What kind of rotten thief is this Alzheimer's Disease to leave people in this manner?
I pray every day for a cure for Alzheimer's. One of my sister's died in her sleep. The autopsy revealed she had died from "hardening of the arteries". The day before she was fine - in fact we'd spoken on the phone (we called one another every week like clockwork, which was about all we could do since she lived 3 time zones away from me). She was looking forward to going to lunch with her friend the next day (actually, her friend was the one who suspected something was wrong). It was hard to lose a sister at such a young age (she was only 59). She had Diabetes Type II but it was under control with a careful diet. She'd just had a check-up a few months prior and was fine. BUT - as hard as it was to lose her (and I still miss her! you have no idea how many times I wanted to pick up the phone to call her only realizing she was gone) - she went quickly and in her sleep. And every day I thank God again and again that she didn't develop Alzheimer's or Cancer which would have robbed her of her dignity.
I lost another sister to cancer, but until she went into coma the last week prior to her death....she was alert and joking and able to carry on a conversation.
More people than we will ever know have died from Alzheimer's Disease. In some cases, if the person is a celebrity they often "cover it up" (which they have every right to do). More often - the person are our uncles, our friends, our neighbours who are not celebrities.
Dear God, this is a fervent prayer from the bottom of my heart: "I pray that a cure be found for this horrible disease, and in the interim - I pray for the caretakers and family and victims of this disease".
No comments:
Post a Comment