- she's had Alzheimer's
(diagnosed) for 8 years.
- she's lived in a nursing home for 2 years, preceded by 6 months in the hospital.
- she can't walk.
- she has limited use of her arms. When she tries to rub her eyes, her hand doesn't always get there.
- she can't feed herself.
- she has trouble seeing/focusing on people at times.
- she sleeps a lot.
- when she speaks, her words are often unintelligible.
Sounds terrible, right?
WRONG!
These would be terrible predicaments for the rest of us, but I've purposely overlooked one very important fact relating to me Mootha....it's the reality that she's very content. I would even say she's happy. Thankfully her sense of humour is intact too, if not blossoming. The road has been long and winding to get to this point. Two years ago she could walk, talk and feed herself but her more 'normal' moments were punctuated with nurse tossing and confusion induced rage. There was also the odd karate chop thrown, and upper cuts (sometimes playful, sometimes real). Those were trying times.
Today it's like a gift when Mom says something relevant and comprehensible. I would estimate that 80-90% of what she says goes by without us recognizing the words. Taking inflection in account changes things somewhat, as she's very animated. In terms of using facial expressions instead of words, she's a master. She could give acting lessons to Betty White! She's often cracking jokes and laughing. About what, we often don't know. Perhaps us??
Today's image is an artistic representation of what transpired in the nursing home yesterday. We were in the east wing lounge (the one with the television and man cave decorations). Julian and I were sitting on the sofa with Mootha in front of us. Doug was sitting in a comfy leather chair directly in Mom's line of sight. Dad was in another chair beside Doug.
It's no secret that Julian and I jump through hoops to entertain Mootha. We act silly. We're facilitators of her comic behaviour. Dad and Doug, the 'science guys', tend to be more reserved (though still attentive). Something completely uncharacteristic happened yesterday when Doug pulled off his sock and asked Mom if she'd like a sock to keep her feet warm. Note: she had her own socks on at the time. Then, Dad walks over to Doug, takes the sock, turns and walks over to Mom with it. Dad dangles the sock in front of Mom's nose. Note: this is definitely out of character for Dad but cleverly planned to elicit a response (Guplov's Dofe).
Mom, in the driest of deliveries, says "what the hell?"
Buried under layers of Alzheimer induced confusion, memory loss and debility is a comic genius. For all those moments when we wonder what she sees, hears, or thinks.....along comes a moment of divine clarity. Never has a situation been summed up better in so few words, with one possible exception:
Where's me Mootha?
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