"I Hope You Dance"

'I Hope You Dance... '

This was written by an 83-year-old woman to her friend.

*The last line says it all. *

Dear Bertha,

I'm reading more and dusting less. I'm sitting in the yard and admiring the view without fussing about the weeds in the garden. I'm spending more time with my family and friends and less time working.

Whenever possible, life should be a pattern of experiences to savor, not to endure. I'm trying to recognize these moments now and cherish them.

I'm not "saving" anything; we use our good china and crystal for every special event such as losing a pound, getting the sink unstopped, or the first Amaryllis blossom.

I wear my good blazer to the market. My theory is if I look prosperous, I can shell out $28.49 for one small bag of groceries. I'm not saving my good perfume for special parties, but wearing it for clerks in the hardware store and tellers at the bank.

"Someday" and "one of these days" are losing their grip on my vocabulary. If it's worth seeing or hearing or doing, I want to see and hear and do it now

I'm not sure what others would've done had they known they wouldn't be here for the tomorrow that we all take for granted. I think they would have called family members and a few close friends. They might have called a few former friends to apologize and mend fences for past squabbles. I like to think they would have gone out for a Chinese dinner or for whatever their favorite food was.

I'm guessing; I'll never know.

It's those little things left undone that would make me angry if I knew my hours were limited. Angry because I hadn't written certain letters that I intended to write one of these days. Angry and sorry that I didn't tell my husband and parents often enough how much I truly love them. I'm trying very hard not to put off, hold back, or save anything that would add laughter and luster to our lives. And every morning when I open my eyes, tell myself that it is special.

Every day, every minute, every breath truly is a gift from God.

If you received this, it is because someone cares for you. If you're too busy to take the few minutes that it takes right now to forward this, would it be the first time you didn't do the little thing that would make a difference in your relationships? I can tell you it certainly won't be the last.

Take a few minutes to send this to a few people you care about, just to let them know that you're thinking of them.

"People say true friends must always hold hands, but true friends don't need to hold hands because they know the other hand will always be there."

Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as well dance

JUST A REMINDER

REMEMBER THIS IS NOVEMBER.

The per person Medicare insurance premium will increase from the present monthly fee of $96.40, rising to: $104.20 in 2012; $120.20 in 2013; And $247.00 in 2014. These are provisions incorporated in the Obamacare legislation, purposely delayed so as not to 'confuse' the 2012 re-election campaigns. Send this to all seniors that you know, so they will know who's throwing them under the bus.

PILL TO BEAT ALZHEIMER’S ~~~???~~~

This article from a British newspaper

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/271140
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A DAILY 10p vitamin pill could prevent millions of people being struck down by Alzheimer’s disease.

Research has found that vitamin B can help protect the brain from dementia.

A large daily dose of a combination of three types of vitamin B has been shown to slow mental decline in the elderly who suffer from mild memory problems.

The breakthrough could lead to a simple new treatment for people at risk of dementia which would be the “holy grail” of research into Alzheimer’s.

The finding is seen as so significant that yesterday researchers announced a major new study into how effective the vitamins are at protecting against the disease.

The trial, involving around 1,000 older people in Britain, will build on previous findings that B vitamins can help prevent brain shrinkage with age.

They will be given carefully measured doses of vitamin B12, B6 and B9 – folic acid – with the aim of finding out whether boosting levels of the vitamins can delay the onset of Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia.

A large daily dose of a combination of three types of vitamin B has been shown to slow mental decline in the elderly who suffer from mild memory problems

And another article!! This one from the LA Times:

Insulin may slow Alzheimer's, study finds inhaling it through the nose twice daily seems to slow symptoms of memory loss. More study is needed, but researchers are encouraged.

http://www.latimes.com/health/la-he-insulin-alzheimers-20110913,0,6983680.story

When an old man died in the geriatric ward of a nursing home in GRASS VALLEY, CA.
It was believed that he had nothing left of any value.

Later, when the nurses were going through his meager possessions, they found this poem. Its quality and content so impressed the staff that copies were made and distributed to every nurse in the hospital.

One nurse took her copy to Missouri.

The old man's sole bequest to posterity has since appeared in the Christmas edition of the News Magazine of the St. Louis Association for Mental Health. A slide presentation has also been made based on his simple, but eloquent, poem.

And this little old man, with nothing left to give to the world, is now the author of this 'anonymous' poem winging across the Internet.

Crabby Old Man

What do you see nurses?.........................What do you see?
What are you thinking ............................When you're looking at me?
A crabby old man ....................................Not very wise,
Uncertain of habit...................................With faraway eyes?

Who dribbles his food...................And makes no reply.
When you say in a loud voice .....'I do wish you'd try!'
Who seems not to notice..............The things that you do.
And forever is losing....................A sock or shoe?

Who, resisting or not ................................Lets you do as you will,
With bathing and feeding.........................The long day to fill?
Is that what you're thinking?..................Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse....................You're not looking at me.

I'll tell you who I am......................As I sit here so still,
As I do at your bidding................ .As I eat at your will.
I'm a small child of Ten.................With a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters......................Who love one another.

A young boy of Sixteen................With wings on his feet.
Dreaming that soon now..............A lover he'll meet.
A groom soon at Twenty.............My heart gives a leap.
Remembering, the vows..............That I promised to keep.

At Twenty-Five, now.....................I have young of my own.
Who need me to guide...................And a secure happy home.
A man of Thirty..............................My young now grown fast,
Bound to each other.......................With ties that should last.

At Forty, my young sons..................Have grown and are gone,
But my woman's beside me.................To see I don't mourn.
At Fifty, once more, babies play 'round my knee,
Again, we know children..................My loved one and me.

Dark days are upon me................My wife is now dead.
I look at the future........................Shudder with dread.
For my young are all rearing.......Young of their own.
And I think of the years................And the love that I've known.

I'm now an old man.....................And nature is cruel.
Tis jest to make old age...............Look like a fool.
The body, it crumbles.................Grace and vigor, depart.
There is now a stone....................Where I once had a heart.

But inside this old carcass........A young guy still dwells,
And now and again...................My battered heart swells.
I remember the joys................I remember the pain.
And I'm loving and living........Life over again.

I think of the years, all too few.........................Gone too fast.
And accept the stark fact..................................That nothing can last.
So open your eyes, people.................................Open and see.
Not a crabby old man.............Look closer.......See ME!!

Remember this poem when you next meet an older person who
you might brush aside without looking at the young soul within.

We will all, one day, be there, too!

PLEASE SHARE THIS POEM

They are not my dad.

The ER doctor said after examining the labs and reports and glancing at my father, "He is in excellent health for 92. There are 25, 35, 45 year olds in here that are much worse health than he is." My thought with my tongue held firmly in my teeth, "everyone else in here is not my father." I hate it when the elderly's problems and sudden downfalls or reactions to medications are put off as "age" or UTIs. URGhhh

Parkinson's Disease Information

If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, you are not alone. More than 50,000 Americans are diagnosed with this neurological disorder each year. Even celebrities are not immune: High profile figures such as Michael J. Fox, Janet Reno, and Muhammad Ali have struggled publicly with the disease.

Although it can be hard to come to terms with living with Parkinson's disease, the good news is that it usually progresses gradually and can be slowed with treatment. Staying informed about the disease, its symptoms and new therapies currently being researched will ensure that you take every step to slow its progress. Continue reading to find out more about these topics.

Click in the article to go to the entire web page about Parkinson's Disease

KEEP YOUR SPIRITUAL LIFE INTACT

Sadly, I have seen too many devoutly religious people work hard for the good most of their lives and then as they approach the end of their journey give up, waste away, and lose their faith. Here are some suggestions:

• Keep practicing your faith. Not so long ago in a big city area a famous bishop of a great denomination approached old age, developed a severely painful case of arthritis, cursed a God that could visit such agony on one of his servants, publicly proclaimed he had given up his faith, became a snarling skeptic, and died a bitter old man. What a sad thing for a quarterback to give up just before the touchdown.

• Get in touch with nature. Spend some time each day outside in nature. If that is not possible, get some plants in your room and grow something. Get your fingers in the dirt, lift your head toward the sky, watch the stars, the clouds, the changing heavens, and then turn your eyes upon the beautiful growing things and exult in the glory of life.

• Speak a good word, or do a good deed, or think a good thought about the positive nature of things. The other day I was feeling a little tired after a long trip to Sacramento. I stopped in a gas station and a young man waited on me. When I paid the bill and started up my car to leave, the young man said, "God go with you on your journey. May you be safe and happy." Maybe he was a religious gook, I don't know. But, I do know that he cheered me up and made me realize the value of a good word to a passing stranger.

• Never give up your hopes for the future. Death is only a step away for those who lose hope and eternal life is available to those who keep up their hope. The great master was crucified between two thieves: one who lost hope and scoffed and sneered; one who still thought life contained some answers and cried out for the master to remember him. When I approach the end of my days, even if I am suffering the tortures of the cross, I want to hear the Golden One say to me, "Today you will be with me in Paradise." How important it is not to give up hope.

• Don't let yourself get bitter or mean. On occasions when people get difficult, a friend will say, "I'm going to move to the middle of the Alaska tundra, a thousand miles from my nearest neighbor." My son John heard my friend make that statement and replied, "Then, you will be involved in a deeper problem, that of raw survival with the elements." A person can't get away from problems. "Life consists of solving problems, and the good life consists of solving them without becoming bitter."

  If people are not tactful and hurt your feelings, show them how to be tactful. E. Stanley Jones, a missionary to India, once said, "I never allow people to hurt my feelings or insult me. No matter what they say, I never take offense; because, the deeper my offense, the shallower my faith." Most of us might find that policy a bit too much, but it works.

  I keep asking myself the question, "How does my bitterness help me to solve this problem?" The answer always is, "It doesn't. Bitterness only makes it more difficult."

• Fight off death to the very end. You believe in life, not death. Show by your eagerness, vitality, and enthusiastic living that you want to live forever. Fill yourself with love of life and keep yourself alive as long as you can and death will be for you a magnificent graduation ceremony.

The above is from another web page and may well be worth reading the entire post. You can do this by clicking HERE or anywhere in the above article.

Older adult health issues

It seems to me that while older adults face greater vulnerability to a number of health issues, their complaints that might lead to early detection are often ignored. Also the complexities presented by dementia, neuopathy, and depression so common in older adults can confound the efforts at diagnosis and intervention. My father's PAD was ignored despite his continued complaints of heavy feet. His dementia was blamed until a loosened blood clot lodged in his lung. The neuopathy in his arm was diagnosed and measures to enhance the possibility of returning function employed but I wonder if so many in the nursing home setting with decreased function of hands and arms may have failed get the same early prevention provisions. My mother's severe headaches were made light of by the medical professional to the point that she felt that there was no hope. Hospice finally brought relief, but why did she have to wait for comfort until she was closer to death. Bladder incontinence is taken as a fact of aging life with little effort extended to improve function. The solution seems to be to put them in a disposable brief. There is a saying among the pro-life proponents that comes from Dr. Seuss, "a person is a person, no matter how small." We should apply that to our older adults as well. A person is a person, no matter how old.

Decisions in cases of Dementia

The most difficult thing about caregiving is making decisions for others. The most important thing is that the decisions reflect what the person would have decided if they were in the position to make the decision. You know how to make some decisions because you know the person well enough to know what they would have decided, but there are so many things you can not be sure of and others that there is no way to know at all. Sometimes what you believe and feel is right is directly opposed to what you know they want, so you must deny your senses and go with thier wishes. This can be especially difficult.