On Wallin Pond

I am deeply touched by people's interest in Andy and how he is doing. In church on Sunday mornings, a number of people ask me how he is doing. It is an indication to me that he is deeply loved and has not been forgotten. This means a lot to me.

Different people with dementia or Alzheimer's display different symptoms or deteriorate at different rates. I have been amazed to watch Andy interact with the other residents, as well as the care staff at his facility. He treats people with respect, is helpful, intuitively knows how someone is feeling and moves to comfort them. When I'm with him at dinner time, there is a man sitting near us who is often in distress, moaning and saying he feels sick. When this happens, I notice that Andy is zeroed in on him, watching closely to make sure he is ok. Or a couple of weeks ago, this same man displayed some aggressive behavior toward the care giver. Andy was on high alert, and I know if he had sensed the care giver was in physical danger, he would have stepped into the situation. In fact, a different time, one of the care givers sought me out to tell me that Andy had done just that - stepping in to protect her from some aggressive behavior.

The speech therapist at Care One, a little Jewish lady, (I'll call her BG), told me that the facility had a rabbi come in one day because of Yom Kippur. The rabbi brought in a shofar. I'm not sure of all he did, but BG told me that Andy went up to her and told her he was a pastor. Of course, she affirmed that to him. 

Another woman, a wife of one of the residents, told me another story about Andy. She said that she observed him sitting on the couch next to the 100 year old. His hand was shaking with his tremors and this 100 year old put her hand on his hand. Then he took his other hand and put it on hers...so sweet.

In spite of Andy's confusion and inability to communicate coherently, there are moments that there is some clarity. Last night I was in his room reading to him. He was having a hard time concentrating because there was activity outside his room. The 100 year old was outside in the hallway talking. She is hard of hearing and her voice is very loud and raspy when she talks. It was impossible to ignore her even outside the room. I didn't know if it was upsetting him, so I said, "That's B, she has a raspy voice." And just like that, he said, "She's 100." I was shocked. He not only knew who I was talking about, he knew that detail of her age. Then I asked him if he wanted to live to 100, and he emphatically and quickly said, "No."

This week saw mixed conditions of how he felt. Earlier, two evenings in a row, his tremors were severe and non stop. Then the next two were good evenings, he hardly shook at all. On top of that, he felt good. We walked outside around the building, one evening even going around twice. He hadn't been able to do that in quite a while. But then the next two evenings, he had severe tremors again and felt awful. So it's an up and down journey.

Someone asked me, as well, how I like the facility where he is. I like it a lot. I feel the staff is caring and responsive to me whenever I have a concern. And they not only care about their residents, I feel they care about me, too. Whenever I enter the building, if the nurse, activities director, marketing director, financial secretary, etc. see me, they take the time to talk to me, tell me anecdotes about Andy, and ask me how I'm doing. This is a huge blessing to me.

Dawn went to see Andy on Friday and someone took her picture with him. He looks pretty good and I love this.

I have missed my hikes through the woods with Andy. It's been almost a year since he has been at Care One. We did so much hiking in the last several years before he was admitted. It was something we both enjoyed and could still do together. Since he's unable to go with me now, I've gone a couple of times with grandkids and friends. One of those friends suggested I organize hiking for women at church. I wasn't sure at first that I wanted to add something to my life. But I promised to pray and think about it. The Lord impressed on me that since I love the outdoors so much and have a lot of experience with hiking in the woods around here and know of many possibilities in our area, I could pass along that love of nature to others. So a couple of weeks ago, I met with two others to plan and put together a few ideas. 

The first of those we did this past Tuesday - a Board/Beach Walk in Ocean City. Six of us drove down, meeting another woman who was spending the week there with her family. We walked the boardwalk - 2 miles, stopped for lunch, then walked another 2 miles before taking the drive back home. The day started somewhat cloudy and even hinted at a few sprinkles, but as the day progressed, there were a few patches of blue that peeked through.

Although I'm not a fan of the color gray, the ocean is beautiful even when it's gray. There's something about watching the waves, smelling the sea air, hearing the calls of the gulls that is therapeutic and calming. 

After God created the world, He declared it "good." He was pleased with what He had made and I believe He is pleased when we enjoy His creation. As I was thinking of this, I was reminded that when I make or do something which I am pleased with, I like for others to appreciate or be impressed with what I have done. Isn't that why we post things to fb or instagram? I confess that when I made a batch of rolls a week ago, I not only posted it to instagram, I also tagged my daughters and my sister, then checked often to see if they liked what I posted. 😊

God tells us that He gives us all things richly to enjoy (1 Timothy 6:17). This includes His creation, in this case this week: the ocean, the shore and friends to enjoy it with.

I found some verses that talk about the ocean in reference to the might and power of God, as well as His forgiveness:

Isaiah 40:12 ~ "Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, or with the breadth of His hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance?"

Proverbs 30:4-5 ~ "Who but God goes up to heaven and comes back down? Who holds the wind in His fists? Who wraps up the oceans in His cloak? Who has created the whole wide world? What is His name--and His son's name? Tell me if you know! Every word of God proves true. He is a shield to all who come to Him for protection."

Psalm 33:5-8 ~ "He loves righteousness and justice; the world is filled with the gracious love of the Lord. By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, all the heavenly bodies by the breath of His mouth. He gathered the oceans into a single place; He put the deep water into storehouses. Let all the world fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him."

How awesome is our God. He holds the waters of the oceans in the hollow of His hand; He wraps up the oceans in His cloak; He puts the deep water into storehouses.

And then there's Micah 7:18-20 ~ "Is there any God like you, forgiving iniquity, passing over transgressions by the survivors who are your heritage? He is not angry forever because He delights in gracious love. He will again show us compassion; He will subdue our iniquities. You will hurl all their sins into the deepest sea."

Our sins are gone, to be remembered against us no more. Hallelujah!

I am continuing to read through Spurgeon's Morning and Evening each day. Tonight's devotional was taken from Psalm 84:11 - "The Lord bestows favor and honor..."

"God is wonderfully generous by nature; to give is His delight. His gifts are immeasurably precious and are given as freely as the light of the sun. He gives grace to His own because He wills it, to His redeemed because of His covenant, to the called because of His promise, to believers because they seek it, to sinners because they need it. He gives grace abundantly, seasonably, constantly, readily, sovereignly; the value of the blessings is doubled by the manner in which it is given. Grace in all its forms He freely supplies to His people: comforting, preserving, sanctifying, directing, instructing, assisting grace He generously and constantly pours into their souls, and He will always do so, whatever may happen. Sickness may come, but the Lord will give grace; poverty may descend on us, but grace will definitely be supplied; death must come, but grace will light a candle in the darkest hour. Reader, how blessed it is as years roll on, and the leaves again begin to fall, to enjoy this unfading promise, 'The Lord bestows favor and honor, no good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless.'"