“Rise in the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly and revere your God. I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:32).
My fingers have been itching to write but fatigue seems to be my constant companion these days. I want to write to encourage you, my readers, but I’m the one who needs the encouragement to keep going. This past month brought many changes to my life. On June 27 a neighbor knocked at my door and said he drove by my dad’s house and found him lying on the ground. It was one of those hot days and he was not in the shade! Thank God for alert neighbors. Two other men came by also and they’d already put pillows under his head and found an umbrella to shade his face. They had called 911 and tried to get him to drink some water.
Once Daddy was alert enough to know what was going on he wanted to get up but was very weak. He wouldn’t go to the hospital in the ambulance so I took him later to the local clinic and from there to the hospital. We were concerned about the pain he was having in his leg. Nothing was broken but they discovered a severe bladder infection and of course he was dehydrated. After a night in the hospital Daddy had had enough and wanted to come home. He came to my home. As you can imagine this has been a learning experience for both of us-stubborn characters we are!
Daddy gets up several times a night and sometimes wants to get dressed at 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning. Dementia is getting worse, as we noticed before his fall. So after a week of not getting much sleep, my sister-in-law and I knew we needed help. We hired someone to stay for 8 hours at night and a few mornings as well. We are reassessing the need and decisions must be made soon about what happens going forward. I don’t think Daddy can live on his own again without 24 hour care and that may not be a good option.
Daddy is making good progress with both occupational therapy and physical therapy so he’s getting stronger. He wants to get back to using his cane instead of a walker. His therapists think he can.
The Bible says, “Honor your father and mother–which is the first commandment with a promise–that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth” (Ephesians 6:2-3). I hope I can do this, with God’s help and the help of others. Daddy has lived 95 years and this community knows him as a faithful Christian and a man of integrity. In the past he did carpentry work in numerous houses in this area and is known for his good work. He also kept his farm going, making hay and tending cattle in recent years. It is hard for Daddy to accept the fact that he is no longer able to do what he once did. He sometimes thinks of himself as useless, which he is not! He has fathered 5 children and lived an exemplary life before us. I thank God for a Christian dad!