The Effects Of Dementia Slowing Chipping Away At My...

FPC Junction and Harper PC 4 100216 Do This in Remembrance of Me Luke 22:7-20; Exodus 12:3-14; 24-27 Memory is a precious commodity, an incredible, internal gift. As I watch the effects of dementia slowing chipping away at my father?s body and mind, I realize that if there are any good aspects to be found in this condition, to me, is it the fact the oldest memories hold on longer while the recent slip away sooner. My father can still tell the same stories I grew up hearing; he can recall with pride his family?s history. While these old recollections are not as strong as they once were, and maybe not as accurate, at least they are still present in some form; they are still available. I do prefer my father have these memories than the ones of his daily decline. Of course, he knows he is not who he once was, but the knowledge does not fill his every waking hour; it is not something he is focused on throughout his days because that is a more recent development and thus something he doesn?t remember as easily. Now, of course, dementia effects more than just memory, but I am grateful that he still has the past to help get him through the difficult present. The same is true for each of us, in a way. Memory is a powerful force triggered not just by thoughts, but by the senses as well. You hear a song from your childhood days for the first time in years and suddenly you are flooded by powerful images, sounds, even smells and tastes. A certain brand of pipe smoke, Sir Walter