Alzheimer’s Memory Walk Seeks Help for Our Grannys

I was lucky enough to have a couple of pretty special Grandmas.  I lost one, Grandma D, to cancer way too early and Alzheimer’s is holding my other one, Grandma F, hostage. 

Although my Grandmothers were very different from each other, neither of them was a typical Grandma.  There were no cookies or pies being baked, that I can recall, but there was commonly beer on hand. There was canning, though.  I especially loved when Grandma D did her pickles.  OHHHH I would love one right now!

I had my first sip of PABST BLUE RIBBON with Grandma D when I was little, while she swore at me and cheated at Yahtzee.  Or was I the one cheating?  The memory gets foggy after so many years.  But she definitely was the one swearing and it was hilarious.  “Don’t chew with food in your mouth G-Darnit” I remember her yelling at me one time.  She couldn’t figure out why I was out of breath and laughing.  Of course she meant don’t “TALK” with food in your mouth but I could not let it go.  It was no secret I had her wrapped around my finger, despite how authoritative she tried to be.  Grandma D lived a hard life and worked hard to overcome life’s many challenges while raising her five kids alone.  She was neither delicate nor petite in the time I knew her, but in pictures of her younger days she was gorgeous.  What never changed was the red lipstick.  I can see it on her plainly, red lips smacking and chewing chicklets, fancied up when we had someplace good to go.  She was so special.

Grandma F could not have been more different than Grandma D in appearance.  She’s always been a teeny tiny little red head, dressed in the hottest trendiest fashions and shaking her bootie at the local Moose Lodge. (cracking up over here thinking ’bout it because I always wanted to go with her so I could see a “moose”)  Nope, no baking going on here, but she did let me help her cook dinner.  I used my first sharp knife with Grandma F and was sworn to secrecy.  I learned how to chop cucumbers and peel potatoes with her.  She and Grandpa lived on and off in Florida, maybe that’s why our closeness didn’t come until later.  Our chats about boys and parents over Chinese food and grape juice are treasured memories.  I gave her her first taste of sweet and sour chicken and she got me hooked on grape juice over ice.  It was around that time, at a family gathering that I learned Grandma F read tea leaves.  It was the coolest thing.  As kids you just don’t imagine your elders having such flavor.  It wasn’t long after that when Grandma F. started feeling bad and losing her memories.  You just never have the time you think you have to explore and spend with your loved ones.

Grandma F is up there in her eighties now and I don’t see her much.  The Alzheimer’s has finally made it too difficult for her to attend family gatherings anymore, but she has kicked its butt and held it at bay for a long time!  Another special lady I was graced with in my lifetime.

Alzheimer’s is a cruel disease whose growth is rapidly multiplying.  It is ten times more common than it was ten years ago and number of documented Alzheimer’s patients is expected to rise from 15 million to 30 million over the next twenty years.  There is no such thing as “getting better” from Alzheimer’s, there is no prevention or cure.  Yet. 

The Alzheimer’s Association Memory Walks taking place in 600 communities nationwide throughout fall offer all of us the opportunity to play a part in bringing an end to Alzheimer’s.  In case I am not able to make the participate in the Flint walk in September I signed up for the virtual walk online.  There are many opportunities to suit you, so take a minute to check it out.  You can even donate directly to the Alzheimer’s Association right through  my team website.  How easy is that?  The Walk really needs some team captains, though, so if motivation is your game, then Captain Stubing is your name…. or something like that. :-) Just find a link and click it to find the opportunity that’s right for you.

Most importantly, hug your Grandma today.  She has a whole lifetime of unique experiences to share, don’t wait too long to start asking her about it.