Let me just first start off by offering my apologies for being such an absent blogger-the Christmas season is always a busy time and with only having Christmas Day and New Years Eve off of work I was left with NO time for relaxing let alone blogging. However, here I am again with finally a full weekend off and time to once again BLOG!
On January 29, 2011 I will be participating in the Manulife Walk for Memories; a fundraising effort put on by the Alzheimer's Society of Toronto. All monies raised during this walk will go to providing counselling, education and information to individuals and families living with Alzheimer's and other dementias. This is the first year that I am participating in this walk and I am very excited about it. On that day I am going to be walking for every resident who I have ever had the pleasure of working with in various long term care facilities who have and still are suffering from these diseases. My current residents all of whom suffer from Alzheimer's Disease and dementia at various stages bring sunshine to my life five days a week and I am honored to get to do this for them. It is my pleasure to be able to see weekly people who suffer from these conditions still finding enjoyment in life. I am honored to get to assist them in living fully day to day. My residents assist me with doing dishes after food programs, watering plants on our patio during warmer months, folding laundry and sorting napkins, get up and dance with me during music programs, enjoy being pampered during nail care, pedicure, hand massage, foot massage and foot soaker programs. I get to see their faces light up when we organize flowers during flower sorting programs or when they spend time with pets during pet theraphy programs and I get to see them enjoy each others company during tea, hot chocolate etc...socials. They make me smile when they become competitive during bowling and ring toss programs. The best part of all of this is when they start to recognize me as someone they trust to assist them whenever they need it and to encourage them to be independent as often as possiable. When they are having bad days I am the girl that gets to show them that they still have worth and value in this life and when God calls them back home I get the privilege of staying with them and comforting them until it is time.
A more personal reason that I am excited about doing this walk is because I get to help fight a disease that took memories and life from my Grandad. I was a child when my Grandad was diagnosed with dementia and had to be placed in a long term care home for his own safety. I was petrified of going to visit him; he was so fragile and at times weak. I remember he used to cry at the fruasteration of what was happening to him because verbalizing it became harder for him as the disease progressed. He used to REFUSE all programming which makes me laugh now considering what I do for a living. I remember him hoarding rotten bananas in his bed side drawer and than trying to give them to us when we came to visit him. He also LOVED animals and got great enjoyment out of dogs when they were in the home and the few times we were able to bring our dogs to come and see him. He used to LOVE golfing and we would take him out to the backyard of the long term care facility he was in where they had a strip of green for practicing putts and such and he used to enjoy swinging his gold club and watching us do the same as he tried to give us instructions. Perhaps he thought either my sisters or I would turn out to be a professional golfer one day. SORRY NO SUCH LUCK THERE! He also used to fold up his walker and hid it behind the chair in his room insisting he was fine to walk on his own and he also insisted that the diabetes the doctors diagnosed him with in old age was nothing to worry about either! He was also forever flirting with the nurses and on one occassion tried to kiss a nurse. In fact when he was on his deathbed a nurse leaned over him to adjust him and his pillows so he would be more comfortable and he KISSED her cheek. A moment she probabily remembers to this day. My grandfather first taught me what my residents remind me off each day...that everybody is first and foremost a PERSON first and deserve to be treated this way!
On January 29, 2011 I will be walking for all of these reasons and so many more...
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