Aging....what a way to go?

"Hi Mom, I love you!" "I'm sorry sir, you have the wrong number!""Mom, don't hang up, this is Kent!" "Oh, okay, I'll let you talk to your dad."
Aging is a flip of the coin in life. Some folks get older with seemingly little physical or mental trials, and others are assaulted by all sorts of "issues" that make the golden years more challenging than we're told they should be. So we struggle to get our elders to eat right and stay safe. It's not that they don't care, but sometimes the challenges of aging can be overwhelming for those living it.
I'm grateful for my Aunt Patti. She took care of grandpa when he reached a point where he shouldn't be driving, and needed a bit more TLC than was normal for him. When I talked to her about our efforts to take care of my husband's parents, she advised that we just let them eat what they want, which is usually fairly healthy, and not try to force things on them, such as more food or liquids than they want. So our goal is to try and make them as comfortable as possible, without making them feel like we are treating them like babies. Tough to do sometimes. It sure gives us cause to be more considerate of our diet, exercise, and spiritual nourishing so that we can be in better shape. Not that it would matter if we have genetic traits such as blindness, arthritis, or loss of hearing. Thankfully, as far as I know, my family is pretty healthy over all, so for me, we shouldn't have to worry, but Kent may inherit, and seems to have already shown signs of hearing loss and such. What advice would you have for taking care of aging parents, and looking into the future for ourselves?

Okay, Play My Game

Take these two words WARM and COLD and by changing only one letter each time to make a new word , see if you can go from WARM to COLD in just four steps. This is part of a game you can play to keep your brain functioning and improve mental agility, especially as you age. Aging has it's ups and downs, the upside is that you no longer have to worry about looking like a top super model, just being able to fit in a decent size should win you model of the year I say. And have you noticed that there must be some direct correlation between hair on men and women, as men start losing the hair on their heads, women get more on their face. Thank goodness our eyesight starts to fade as we get older as well, as my husband doesn't seem to see the tiny lines starting to find their way across my forehead and around my eyes. He still thinks I'm a "babe"...lol.
So back to mental agility, as we age and our bodies are not as agile as we like, we can still keep our brains sharp and maintain that brilliant wit we are known for...okay, maybe not me, but there are some out there that are quite witty. crossword puzzles, word games, count games, lists, are all ways we can keep sharp. We can also improve mental agility by moving our posteriors around a track or the block several times a week. We don't have to run, walking is great. This can help decrease the risk of dementia as well. Eating right can also help. Eat your fruits and veggies as well as fish to stay alert as well. For more information on this check out www.brainagility.com.
Oh, and yes this was a test....did you get it right?

Letting go....

It's hard to believe that just 9 months ago Dad came out to Wendover to see the air show and go for a ride on a b-25? bomber. He was still doing well even though he had a pace maker he was getting around and taking care of himself and Mom with no problem. This morning Kent called me in a panic as his mom had just called him to come back to Tooele as Dad had fallen and she couldn't get him up. Luckily Kent had only gotten as far as Grantsville on his way to Wendover so he rushed back and found Dad prone with blood pooled around one arm. He was okay, but had really scraped his arm during the fall so Kent helped get him bandaged up. Mom is not able to take care of him as she is mostly blind, deaf and anorexic so we are trying to get them home health care but they keep fighting it.
So what do we do now? I called Dad's physician to get help and we shall see what the evaluation will be. I don't expect Dad to be around much longer so we will probably have Kent stay with his parents and care for them in July just in case. We are praying that what is best for Dad will happen. Which means that he may go quickly. So how to I help Kent and Paula and everyone let go? And how can they help Dad let go? Dad is weary and weak from being wracked with arthritic pain. One of the fiercely independent generation that went through WWII he feels useless and a burden. But he worries about Mom and what will happen to her. So he must feel caught, he can't eat very well, doesn't taste the food anymore as his taste buds are shot, can't do things physically that he was doing right up to a year ago, and yet there's Mom. Along with all her health issues she is somewhat senile, which is understandable for their age. I'm sure that Dad doesn't want to leave her and it makes it hard for him. If you believe, and have a moment today, would you mind sending a prayer up on their behalf?