Tonight's picture was taken in December of 2003. Mattie was a year and a half old and was in Los Angeles, visiting with my parents. We set up a miniature tree for Mattie in the kitchen and Mattie loved playing with the ornaments and checking out the gifts around the tree. Mattie took to traveling like a duck to water. He loved new experiences.
Quote of the day: You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the things which you think you cannot do. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
Today was a typical busy day. I took my mom to physical therapy and she is taking a break from therapy until January. So as of this week both of my parents were discharged from therapy. This will give me a bit of a break for a few weeks from running around from one clinic to the next.
After therapy we came home and I literally went right upstairs to my bed and napped for an hour. I needed it to function for the rest of the day, because as soon as I got up, I had to pick up my dad from the memory care center and take my parents out to lunch.
When I picked up my dad, he literally had NO MEMORY of anything he did during the four hours he was there. He carries a notebook in his pocket, but the only thing he records was his lunch menu. For the most part, my dad has NO interests, doesn't enjoy much and therefore it makes it very difficult to do anything outside of the house. Personally as a caregiver it takes a lot of inner strength to manage my dad and mom together, because each and every day is like the day before. The human spirit really does need some freedom and activity to keep it going.
It was a tradition when Mattie was alive, that the day after Thanksgiving, Peter and Mattie would get the Christmas lights out and decorate the commons area of our townhouse. I can't tell you how many of our neighbors would stop to thank me for adding this colorful cheer to their holiday season.
After Mattie died in 2009, Peter and I haven't put one Christmas light up. We have had NO tree, no wreath, NOTHING! Now that we moved into the house in 2021 and have my parents with us, last year was the first year we decorated again.... after 12 years! Yes 12 years! It was truly strange last year to decorate. I did not feel guilty to decorate, but I must admit it no longer brings me joy. To me it is just one more task to do and then put away. Unfortunately my mindset about the holidays and celebrations have forever changed.
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