We think of change as mostly relating to seasons, weather, or the stuff we throw in the bottom of a jar that we will never use. Rarely when we hear change do we think about ourselves or the people around us changing at a constant rate.
As we grow we change, it is inevitable, we adapt into who we want to become as adults. But, not all the changes that happen in our body are good.
Tuesday wasmy grandma's birthday, and she has changed. I remember my grandma as a strong woman who loved crocheting, gardening, and just spending time with her family and grandchildren. About 8 or 9 years ago, my grandma had an accident. She was gardening and fell which caused a brain bleed. After being airlifted to Minneapolis we realized that it was a very real possibility we may lose her, and in a way we did.
Grandma had a long and hard recovery. She had problems recovering memories, speech and names. But she was improving. However, our hopes of a full recovery for her were not in the future because after her accident she was diagnosed with vascular dementia.
Over the years, and as a family, we've had to watch my grandma's personality, and the very core of who she was, change. Grandma was always a very active woman in the community. She loved visiting with others and going places with grandpa. Now, grandma doesn't even like to answer the phone.
My grandma, or "lake grandma," as I called her when I was little, used to love watching us grandkids swim at the lake and enjoy the Minnesota summers. Now, grandma will hardly get out of the car to come into the house and say hi when she visits.
The worst part about all the changes that grandma is going through, is that she doesn't want them to be happening. She doesn't want to struggle to find the right word or do basic daily tasks. But, she has no choice. Her body has changed her against her own will, and she is as helpless to it as we are.
I was not ready to change from being a college student to being a full-time adult, but I was even more unprepared for my grandma to change.
But this is life and it is unpreventable, and it happens whether we are ready for it to or not.
