Up and Down Joe

It has been a busy week for Dad. Our life is in a whirl this month and that means that he has no shortage of things to do. Today was our open house for our daughter graduating from high school. It was a sort of melancholy day. She is the last of six. No more open houses for our own children. Next stop, grandchildren. The plus side, all we have to do is go, not prepare it all. We had quite a crowd stop by. Dad liked that. He had many people to talk with. Both my siblings were there to see him. He liked that. He was having one of his really clear days today, so it was a good time to see people and visit.

The other day he was quite confused. My bride went to the honors award program at the high school and came home with all our daughter's "hardware" (valedictorian medals, braids and tassels along with some certificates). He asked what they were and was told. Later he was going on about how wonderful she was to clean house, do dishes, cook and write all those letters and then get those nice awards for doing it. We all looked at him with one of those "What?" looks. He thought all the awards were my bride's awards for being the best wife and mother around. No, he wasn't joking. We said, "Those are Mary's awards." Yes," he said, "I know. Those are Mary's awards." Then he turned to my wife and said, "You are Mary, aren't you. My mother is Mary." We simply said, "No, our daughter Mary." "You have a daughter Mary?" he asked. "But you are Mary, too. My mother's name was Mary." No, bride's name is not Mary. That's alright, he would never understand. It was just good that he was so clear today.

The social worker came this week to look in on him. It is nice to have those support services. If nothing more, it is a chance for me to unwind with an understanding ear. She visited with him for about 45 minutes. Then she said to my wife, "He is confused today, isn't he?" Yes, he was. It was good to get all that confusion out of his system for today. He played the regular host of the party. Afterwards he played cards with my brother and went to bed happy, but not clean. He helped get things ready for today's open house by sweeping the sidewalks and the garage. He was so dirty. I told him to please get cleaned up before the guests arrived and to take a shower. He was adamant that he didn't need to be told to do such a simple thing. The truth is, he changed his clothes, but he didn't shower. When we were outside just before the reception I was standing next to him and I about gagged. So, he is not altogether clear, but he was clear enough to have a great time at the party. Way to go Dad.