Eight years ago today, our Grandpa lost his battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. For the past year, Mom has been organizing the contents of Grandpa’s childhood home. A home that has been in the family for multiple generations. There she found tucked in the attic eaves Grandpa’s treasured toys, in bedroom drawers cards with wobbly childhood writing made with love for his mother, and even a scrapbook our Great Grammy filled with newspaper clippings from his career as an instrumental music teacher. There were also the photos of holiday celebrations, family vacations, and playing in the yard with his siblings; along with so many milestones from school pictures, graduations, wedding, military service, and starting a family of his own. Treasured memories from a life cut far too short.
Alzheimer’s Disease robbed our Grandpa of these memories. Yet Grandpa fought so hard to keep them, as evident when he’d accidentally call his son the name of a dear cousin, or when he would hear music and the light of recognition would glimmer in his eyes as he happily danced, conducted, sang along, or exclaimed, “YAH!” after a trumpet solo. And oh how he held fast to his love of dogs! He may have called us by the name of our older brother Lemmy, or the name of a childhood pet, and finally simply “doggies,” but whenever he saw us he’d put on the biggest smile, during phone calls would ask how we were doing, and at the Senior Center and church would happily tell people of his granddogs. Despite his daily struggles, we knew deep down inside these memories remained safe in Grandpa’s heart.
Yesterday Asa and I continued our annual tradition of participating in our family’s Walk to End Alzheimer’s with our Grandma, Uncle, Mom and Dad. We walked in the neighborhood that Grandpa once rode his bike, to the park where he would take Mom and our Uncle sledding in the winter, and finally to the cemetery where we said goodbye to him eight years ago. Across the country this autumn, countless other families are participating in the Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s, as we strive to raise funds and awareness for a breakthrough in the fight against Alzheimer’s and all other dementia. Please consider joining us in supporting this cause, so that future grandpas and grandmas can hold onto their precious memories. To learn more about the important work of the Alzheimer’s Association, and the resources available to help those with the disease and their caregivers, please visit ALZ.org.
