“No, never!  I don’t want photos of Mother [Father, Aunt Suzie, etc.] with Alzheimer’s,” you exclaim.
Each person looks at this differently and the way they want to remember that family member.  Some don’t want anything around to recall the Alzheimer’s days.  Others don’t mind because many of these memories, even though perhaps bittersweet, are filled with love.
Possibly, during the very last stages of their life with Alzheimer’s if they look very ill, emanciated, and totally unlike the person you’d like to remember, you won’t want photos.  However, I find the photos of Mother during her Alzheimer’s years memorable, especially those taken with …read more

“You’re going to interview me?” Mother asked with a smile as she settled into her chair.
“Yes, Mother,” I replied, taking out my notebook and pen.  Then we sat for nearly an hour while Mother reminisced and I jotted down notes about her childhood, her teaching years in a one-room schoolhouse, and stories of various relatives.
I realize now that in doing this, listening to the memories of an Alzheimer’s patient, I helped preserve our family legacy.  If Mother hadn’t become afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease, would she and I have taken time to escape into the past?
Don’t get annoyed with your family …read more