Red's Wrap
Happiness. It's relative.
Tag: Alzheimer’s Disease
Morning Routine
It’s impossible to convince him that WOOF is not the name of coffee. When he wakes up and sees me gathering myself, finding my robe and my flip flops, he smiles from his night nesting spot under the red pillow because he knows I’m… Continue Reading “Morning Routine”
It’s Still Alright
“What’s that up there?” “That’s the moon, Janey. Remember the moon?” The moon. That’s the moon. What’s that up there?” “The moon, Janey. It’s the moon. Remember the moon when we were young?” “The moon. Moon. Moon.” “That’s right, Janey. The moon.”
Button Up Your Pod
Stories of people my age forgetting which is the business end of a pencil make my blood run cold. That wasn’t always the case. When the people who got the mental flutters were a lot older than me, I could relax. I was in… Continue Reading “Button Up Your Pod”
Why I’m Smarter than I Used to Be
Maybe I should be in intellectual decline but I’m not. If anything, I’m smarter than I’ve ever been. Fundamentally, this is because being smart isn’t about agility, it’s about strategy. Being strategic requires wisdom, patience, imagination, and data, the kind of data one can… Continue Reading “Why I’m Smarter than I Used to Be”
Demented
In the afternoon, she’d sit by the window, the jigsaw puzzle spread on the table, and, for hours, she’d pick up the pieces and put them down, the mystery companion to her misery. ___________________ Written in response to a Trifecta Writing Challenge to use… Continue Reading “Demented”
At My Mother’s Knee
Showing up after ten years’ absence when your mother is ill with Alzheimer’s Disease and having her look at you and say, “I never thought I’d see you again,” and realizing that if you had waited, like you wanted to, for another six months… Continue Reading “At My Mother’s Knee”
Glory
They were married a good long time. Longer than most of us will be married. My mother would say, “Nobody knows what’s in a marriage but the people in it,” so I hesitate to describe their relationship but, to me, it seemed that there… Continue Reading “Glory”
On My Mother’s Birthday
We weren’t much for celebrating birthdays in our family. Oh, occasionally, there would be a cake and I do remember one party with an assortment of kids around our dining room table. But it was only once. It’s a family’s mom who organizes things like… Continue Reading “On My Mother’s Birthday”
Will the Last Thought to Leave, Please Turn Off the Light?
I am doomed. If I thought I was going to do figure eights around Alzheimer’s Disease, taking first the inner edge then the outer of a perfect pair of white figure skates, laughing knowingly at my age peers stringing little beads together around a… Continue Reading “Will the Last Thought to Leave, Please Turn Off the Light?”
Prepare a Place For Me
There was only one reason why my father would be calling me. My mother must be dead. He explained how it happened, how just last week he had given up taking care of her at home, that for the third time, she’d gone limp… Continue Reading “Prepare a Place For Me”
Snow Door | wisconsinacademy.org
Listen to Jan read her essay “Billy” presented on WUWM’s Lake Effect
Jan’s essay “At the Breakfast Bar” on WUWM Lake Effect
Jan’s essay “The Parish Hall,” on WUWM Lake Effect
“Fury Cannot Touch Me,” Modern Love, NYT, 9/29/11
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