A Day in the Life of Alzhemizers

This   day   starts   much   like   any   typical   day   for   this   man.   He   wakes   up   promptly   at   four-thirty   a.m..   His   daughter   in   the   next   room   sleeping,   he   stares   at   her   for   several   seconds   unsure   if   it   is   ok   to   wake   her.   He   decides   to   ever-so-gently   pat   her   on   the   arm.   He   says   to   her   in   a shaky   voice,   “You’ve   been   sleeping   for   so   long,   I   was   getting   worried”.   Sara,   the   daughter,   gets   up,   hugs,   and   kisses   her   dad   on   the   check.   She   asked   him   if   he   was   ready   for   his   morning   cup   of   java.  
Each   morning   the   man   gets   and   has   as   much   structure   as   possible   because   he   suffers   from   Alzheimer’s.   This   particular   day,   his   wife   had   went   out   of   town   leaving   his   grown   daughter,   Sara   and   her   son   John,   to   care   for   him.   Sara   comes   in   on   weekends   when   her   step-mother   needs   to   be   away.
Sara   fixes   the   coffee   while   her   dad   eagerly   paces   the   floor.   As   she   hands   him   his   coffee, she   looks   at   this   man   that   has   lately   become   a   stranger   to   her.   He   stands   around   five   foot   nine   inches   tall,   with   thinning   salt   and   pepper   hair.   His   face   oval   with   bright   green   eyes   and   raised   cheekbones.   His   frame   is   frail   and   thin.   He   looks   like   the   daddy   she   has   always   know   and   loved,   but   this   man   was   very   different.
As   they   sat   down   together   to   enjoy   the   steeping   hot   aromatic   cup   of   coffee   they   begin   to   talk.   He   is   actually   having   a   conversation   with   her   that   she   can   make   some   sense   out   of.   He   tells   her   how   important   it   is   to   always   be   aware   of   who   your   friends   and   family   are.   She   immediately   knows   what   he   means.   As   she   listens   to   him   her   eyes   begin   to   swell   with   tears.   He   is   talking   about   her   brother,   Terry,   who   has   not   been   to   see   their   dad   in   about   a year.   The   sadness   of   this   is   not   just   that   its   his   son,... [continues]

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