Visiting with my father in his advanced stage of dementia leads to exciting discoveries. My dad has an extensive imagination, he has invented brothers, sisters, wives, children, and visitors. So many children populate his mind and surround him with laughter I cannot hear. He is constantly trying to pick up and fix imaginary electronics before his imaginary boss catches him goofing off. “Who is that?” He says.
Who is that? He says
My mother visits him three times a week in the memory care center near their home. My brother lives near and will visit dad when he can. It is good to know family is there even when I can’t be there. I love to read my mother’s updates after every visit there. She keeps me up with my dad and lets me know how he is doing.
When she prays with my dad at the end of each visit, sometimes my dad becomes lucid again, and she has a precious moment. She sings to him hymns and reads letters or short articles she writes. And she brings him small treats he always loved.
My dad’s spirit is still there, occasionally, but I pray he goes home to heaven soon. There he will be at peace and full of joy. His body will no longer pain him. And he will be reunited with his family and his children that have gone before him.
I pray for my mother to have strength physically, emotionally, and spiritually to handle the changes. She trusts God with each day and the trials she faces. I pray I will be able to trust God the same way.
