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| "A fine bucket of fish!" |
"Loose Connections"
Her thoughts go ‘round in circles now--
mid-sentence they change direction,
mid-sentence they change direction,
as signal loses its connection.
She still communicates somehow;
sometimes we hear her words quite clear
when lesser gods choose to allow.
Perfect in her imperfection;
her thoughts go ‘round circles now...
© Ginny Brannan 2013
Finding the joy in
rare moments…
Communication--another
piece of the Dementia puzzle: At work I observe the elderly, many who are challenged by dementia. Though bittersweet to watch their slow, progressive decline, many manage to do okay within their limited world. On occasion their frustration and thoughts run
with perfect clarity, especially when we don’t grasp something quick
enough. Unable to come up with an
answer for one of our residents recently, she started to ask again, then stopped
mid-sentence, looked at me and said “Why am I asking you, you
don’t know!! Well, isn’t that just a fine
bucket of fish?!!” ZING!! Much to my chagrin, I’d say she communicated that quite well,
along with sending a zinger back to me!!
We do love our people, especially during the rare moments when they make us laugh!
**Lesser god: Originally coined in Alfred Lord Tennyson’s Idylls of the King, and then taken as
title of a movie about someone deaf, it is a reference suggesting that if God
created man perfect in His image, then “lesser gods” created all who would be
disabled, disfigured or challenged.
I have written of the more serious side of this subject
before, and was honored to have it published by Journey of the Heart, Women’s
Spiritual Poetry, here.
perfect in her imperfection..i like that...it is sad/scary a bit...mental illness...i hope never to have to deal with it myself...but you do have to take those moments when you get them...and smile...ha.
ReplyDeleteCaregivers like yourself make this condition a bit less scary. I love this down-to-earth poem of the every day. Well, I love everything you write :)
ReplyDeleteOh Ginnhy, this is touching and heartbreaking and funny. My mom had dementia, and so I know just what you're talking about. Nice one.
ReplyDelete"Her thoughts go ‘round in circles now--
ReplyDeletemid-sentence they change direction,
as signal loses its connection"
Very insightful and sensitive. It's even harder when the dementia sufferer has lucid moments--then they know they're afflicted and can't do anything about it.
Lovely Ginny.
ReplyDeleteI love our residents too and derive great pleasure from my work and know of the conversations of which you write.
I thank you for your comment on my recent post - it was much appreciated.
Dementia and its affect on carers is a strange thing. As said, I love our residents, yet when my mother demented I gradually ceased to love her and seeing the 'stranger' she became was very painful.
I guess the difference is that I knew (and loved) her before dementia ravaged her, whereas the residents I only have known them as they are now.
Hugs to you too!
Anna :o]