Sorry, Folks

I know that I've been neglecting the ol' blog, and I'm really sorry for that. Life has been, well, busy lately.

The family and I took a road trip to visit Grandma earlier this week. She's in what's called a "mind-care" facility, which is a polite way of saying that Grandma, and the other residents, have Alzheimer's. We can't utter that nasty A-word, though, because it terrifies those of us who know what it really means. Including Grandma, who still has good days - and, during these periods, knows what's been, and what's coming, because she saw her own mother, who also had Alzheimer's.

What really bothers me - aside from the fear, that is - is the shame that surrounds this disease. Grandma knew, YEARS AGO, that she had Alzheimer's...but nobody in the family discovered this fact until recently (within the last couple of years, I believe). Having seen her own mom suffer the same disease, Grandma was ashamed of what she knew was going to happen in the future. She didn't want any of us to know. I don't blame her, because I'm sure that I would want to have some semblance of control if I were in her position. Maybe keeping the secret was all that she knew to do.

But I AM ticked off that anyone on this planet would, for even a nanosecond, be ashamed of something that isn't his or her fault. It's not like Alzheimer's is your punishment for whaling on your kid, or drinking a jug of moonshine and mowing down pedestrians with your F350. There's a massive difference between being a tool and being sick.

Grandma enjoyed having us around, though, which is awesome. We got to just sit and talk, and listen, to each other. In addition to Mom, most of my sibs, and myself, two of my aunts were there, along with Kid Sis' boyfriend. So, yeah, there was a nice little group at the facility for a few hours. Grandma seemed to enjoy herself, even if she couldn't quite remember most of us. We reintroduced ourselves every so often, and that was that.