The Lady-Links are walking to win the battle against Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias.  Recently our retirement community held a Walk to End Alzheimer’s event and the Lady-Links eagerly participated.

With more than six million Americans living with Alzheimer’s, we feel the need to step up the efforts to find a cure.  The majority of the dear friends with cognitive decline that we visit weekly have Alzheimer’s Disease.  Each year, we walk in honor of our dear friends and are committed to bring love and laughter into their lives until a cure is found.

One day, we hope our efforts to raise awareness for more research into this progressive neurological disease will help end it completely.

What’s special to you?  Chances are, it’s special to someone else too.  That is what Show and Tell is all about.  Finding things that connect us and provide a link to shared memories.

We all use bags to carry items from groceries to books… and everything in between.  “What’s in your bag?” is a take-off of a popular commercial about the importance of things we carry with us. We usually think of what’s in the bag when we plan for a Show and Tell visit with our dear friends, those ladies in our community with various types of cognitive decline.  However,  when one Lady-Link brought a bag for Show and Tell, not only did it spark conversation about things we “tote around” but the most conversation occurred about what was on the bag rather than what was in it.  It was a special photograph of  some of the women pilots from World War II.  This all-female flight organization, known as WASP (Women Air Force Service Pilots), was responsible for ferrying aircraft to free up male pilots for combat missions.

The WASP training took place at Avenger Field in Sweetwater, Texas which is where our Lady-Link lived when she was a child.  What bags do you have that tell a story simply from their design rather than their contents?

Bags for your favorite team or player?  Bags with interesting patterns?

Bags from special places you’ve visited?

Bags that are unique in color or texture?

Connections are an important part of socialization, and even a bag can tie us together!

Why not reach out to your friend or loved one in cognitive decline to explore bags… what’s inside and what’s outside?  Perhaps you’ll be surprised at the connections you’ll find!

Childhood dolls….what a great Show and Tell item to inspire conversation!

These dolls came with a book that told about the country they represented.

The book was read to one of our Lady-Links when she was a child by her mother.  She explained that her mother wanted to give her a broader view of the world other than her little town in west Texas where she was living at the time.

Our visit was filled with memories shared about dolls and mothers who inspired us to learn about other cultures and customs.   That led to conversations about travels and adventures that were both meaningful and enjoyable.

Our dear friends enjoy our Show and Tell visits because they help them recall similar experiences.  It’s a fun way to find connections that prompt memories that we can share.  That’s what the Lady-Links love to do….find connections (“links”) and then add plenty of love and laughter!

The Lady-Links love to keep connected to their dear friends, those ladies in our community with some type of cognitive decline, and making cards to send them is always fun.  It’s fun for us to make them and fun for our dear friends to receive them.

Recently we made over 80 cards, each with a cheerful message to send to our dear friends.

With a little prep work to either buy or make stickers and gather supplies, we spent a morning creating cheerful cards that we knew would make our dear friends smile.

Each card was unique….no two were alike, but all had a “Thinking of You” message that was sure to make the recipient feel valued and appreciated.

Connecting with friends or loved ones in cognitive decline is important.  It keeps them engaged with life and helps them overcome periods of loneliness, anxiety and depression.  We have been told that when our dear friends receive our cards, they continue to hold them and enjoy them for days.

A card gives our dear friends something tangible.  It’s a connection through a sense of touch, and a great way to show that we care.

 

We all love books.  Many of us started first grade with the Dick and Jane series and quickly progressed from there.  After learning to read, the opportunity to go to the school library was a treat….we could each select a book that was of a specific interest to us, connecting us to its pages with fascination.  All books are meaningful in some ways, but finding a book that connects specifically to our lives is a bonus.  At several recent Lady-Links visits, we shared how certain books have been a bonus to us because they brought an extra measure of meaning and connection with them.

From the Oklahoma Dust Bowl to the Dallas Cotton Bowl is an intriguing story of one of our Lady-Links.  Her memoirs are published in several volumes, and we were captivated by her descriptions of her childhood and teen years.  We could relate and share our own similar memories, making for a very engaging visit.

Another Lady-Link shared children’s books authored by her daughter.  As we read through one of the books, we each added our own favorite recollection of the Bible story on which the book was based.

Two books from a collection owned by one of our Lady-Links provided a special connection for us.  A McGuffey’s Eclectic Reader, Second Level, first published in 1836, incorporated moral instruction and etiquette with reading and language skills.  We enjoyed reading passages from this reading primer used to educate children over 100 years ago and comparing them to what we remember from our early years of learning to read phrases like,  “See Dick.  See Jane.  See Spot run.”  What fun memories we shared from our early reading adventures with the Dick and Jane series.

 

An antique book of poems printed in the 1920s  contained some familiar as well as some unfamiliar poetry.  We enjoyed hearing a poem on the merits of being strong regardless of circumstances.  It reminded us to always look for the best in any situation.

Connecting to our dear friends through books is clearly a bonus to them and to us as well.  It helps us relate to one another and connect some of our shared life experiences.  It encourages conversation and inspires memories.  Although our dear friends don’t always retain comprehension of what they read, they can connect “in the moment” with the concept that is being expressed.  Connecting emotionally with positive responses is a bonus to to anyone’s life,  and books are a great way to stimulate that type of feeling.  Books with a connection…a bonus for sure.

The Lady-Links know how to celebrate with lots of love and laughter, and preparing for July 4th was no exception.  We had a “blast” as we prepared over 100 patriotic crafts to send to the continuing care residents in our retirement community.

Our Crafts Coordinator organized the event with lots of craft choices that represented a patriotic theme.

The Lady-Links have made crafts such as these for the last ten years and always have fun doing them.

It was a special time of sharing stories about July 4th celebrations from our past….fireworks displays, parades, and barbeques….and of thinking how the dear friends who receive these patriotic crafts will be prompted to recall a memory or two from their pasts as well.

Celebrating with Crafts

Happy Fourth of July from the Lady-Links

We hope you had a “blast” as you celebrated Independence Day.  We certainly did!

 

 

Do you remember folding fans?  At a recent lady-Links visit, we enjoyed unfolding these folding fans and reminiscing about times we used them as children.  I’m sure our grandchildren can’t imagine a time without air conditioning, but we certainly do.  These types of fans provided a much needed breeze during many hot and humid events.

Some of the memories we “unfolded” as we held these folding fans included going to church revivals when we were children “back in the day.”  Whether inside a church or outside under a tent, we all agreed that hand-held fans were a must.  Most of us brought our own folded fans, but for those who didn’t have them, the church typically provided individuals with a fan that was a solid piece of cardboard on what looked like a long popsicle stick.  Sometimes those cardboard tops had advertisements on them from local stores or even scriptures such as John 3:16 printed on them.  Other memories involved trying to keep cool in unconditioned schools.  Usually each classroom would have one electric fan that would try to provide some relief from the heat, but unless you sat right in front of it you were hot!

Folding notebook paper to make a quick fan was what we had to do, especially in some of our schools that were three stories tall.  It got hot on that third floor!

But whatever the place or event, fans were a big part of our childhood and we enjoyed reminiscing about those times.  All of us agreed that we are glad that fans are a part of our memories and not currently a necessity like they once were!  So if the electricity goes out and we lose our air conditioning, at least we know what to do….that is, if we can find a piece of notebook paper!

 

Summertime is here, and the Lady-Links know how to make some “cool” connections with their dear friends, those ladies in our community with various types of cognitive decline.  In addition to our visits where we make seasonal crafts, we also enjoy making seasonal cards to send to them.

Recently our focus was on summer, with lots of designs to represent this season of the year.  Making these cards was what we call a “win-win” event.  We had such fun getting together to make the cards, and we know the ladies who receive them will have fun opening the envelopes to find a cheerful card inside!

Our crafts coordinator had plenty of colorful combinations for us to consider….no two cards were alike!

From ladybugs to butterflies, the designs were so colorful and cheerful that we were all smiles as we worked.

The Lady-Links know how to say “hello” to summer in a “cool” way!  May you have a summer filled with nice days (and lots of cool ones too)!

Who knew that a set of trolls could bring such smiles to our Lady-Links at a recent Show and Tell visit with one of our dear friends.  We never know what will happen at our Show and Tell visits because the items we bring range from something ordinary to something very unique.  But we can always count on smiles, conversation, and connections at each of these visits.  What was unusual about this visit was that our dear friend wanted to share something she had that was meaningful to her….so out came the trolls!

Along with the set of trolls came an explanation of the meaning of trolls in European folklore.  It was a great visit with lots laughter shared as we looked at the features on these rather weird-looking creatures!

But “unusual” items don’t surprise us….in fact, they add to the spontaneity of the Show and Tell visits.  One of our most fun visits with this dear friend was when a Lady-Link brought a ceramic mushroom she made and began to tell us some of the legends surrounding mushrooms….such as the idea that mushrooms can communicate with one another!  A talking mushroom… we’d all like to see that!  I can’t remember laughing so much as when we tried to figure out what one mushroom might say to another mushroom!

Even something as “ordinary” as string can bring lots of memories and smiles.  One of our Lady-Links brought a large spool of string that reminded us that string was used to wrap packages at the store when we were young.  That prompted memories of shopping with our parents in local stores long before plastic bags were “invented.”  Memories were shared such as how packages were sent through the mail after they were firmly secured with brown paper and string, rather than the packing tape or self-seal boxes that we use today.

Other more common items, such as jewelry and pottery are just as effective and are always sure to inspire conversation. Pieces one of our Lady-Links brought to a visit have a southwest look to them, coming from Arizona and South America.  This prompted conversations about color and design combinations, travel, and what type of souvenirs we like to bring back from a trip.

Are you getting the picture here?  It’s not so much about what you bring to your visit with your friend or loved one in cognitive decline….anything will do….it’s what you do with the object that you bring that makes for a successful visit.  Here are some tips to remember:

1. Talk briefly about the object such as where you got it, what it’s used for, and why it’s meaningful to you. (This is not a report that you are giving to an audience. What you say should be more conversational in style and tone rather than as if you were making a presentation.)
2.  Engage your dear friend or loved one by letting them hold it.
3.  Let the object inspire conversation.
4. Find a connection…a similar experience perhaps from childhood or shared memories of when something similar was used.

The Show and Tell visits are some of our most successful visits because there are so many ways to find connections.  And that’s what we want to do….we want to keep our dear friends connected (linked) to their surroundings because it improves their quality of life and helps them feel a sense of purpose.  We’re named Lady-Links for a reason,  and we enjoy helping to keep those links strong!

 

Most of us have enjoyed a hot beverage each morning throughout our adult lives, probably coffee or tea.  So it should be no surprise that at a recent Lady-Links visit with our dear friends, those ladies in our community with various types of cognitive decline, that we could connect through shared memories of those early morning times.  A collection of cups and mugs sparked conversations about favorite teas and coffees, and times spent with family and friends.

We talked about coffee and tea served in our kitchens, and times when we needed a container to take it “on the go.”  

Those memories of shared experiences based on a simple morning routine provided lots of love, laughter and joy during one of our recent visits.  As Lady-Links, we are friends with our dear friends, and the sharing of love, laughter and joy comes naturally during our visits with them.  If you have a loved one or friend in cognitive decline, “what’s in your cup” that you might share to spark memories that inspire conversations and connections?  You’ll be glad you did….we were!  It’s what friends are for!