Knowing that my father's health is only declining, and somewhat quickly lately, I made plans to go visit him before school started back and our crazy schedule began again. With Bennett away on a mission trip, I only took Preston with me. I had to prepare him that Poppy doesn't "talk" anymore. He can string words together, but they don't usually make sense, and he speaks so quietly, it is really hard to even hear him most of the time.
As soon as we landed, we went straight to visit him. He was wandering around like he usually does. He smiled and recognized me,
but quickly faded back into his world. He is so slumped over, and shuffles around. We tried to communicate with him, but he was a little agitated. Once we got some lunch in him, he was a little better.
After we left, we went to get some lunch and then went to play golf at CCP. I was playing incredibly well (which is usually the case when I only play once a year). Sadly, a rain storm blew in on hole 3 and the torrential rain was not letting up. So we headed back home to change out of our VERY wet clothes. That night we grabbed dinner out, and hit the hay early since Pres and I had been up since 4:30am.
Monday morning, we got up and went to play mini golf before we visited Poppy! Nene beat us both, but it was a beautiful morning (no humidity and a slight breeze). Afterward, we headed over to visit with Poppy, and we took him out to enjoy the day. Like most days, his buddies tend to hang with us (Dad is definitely the resident with the most visitors).
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| Pres loved playing the therapy games with the other tenants |
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| Dad still knows mom and calls her by name every day! |
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| Dad was trying to watch Pres |
That afternoon, we went back out to the club to play golf. However this time, I played like crap and Mom beat the stew out of me. It was a beautiful day though, so I enjoyed it, and Pres had fun watching us play. That night, Mom and Pres went out for Mexican and I met an old classmate for a bite to eat. Roni and I have known each other since elementary school, so it was fun to get together and catch up.
On our last day, we went back to spend some time with Dad. It is always sad to say good-bye, especially when I don't know when I will be back. But the hardest part is knowing that he may not recognize me the next time I come back. This disease is the worst. It is so demeaning to the ones it affects, and so hard on the loved ones. I love you Dad.
