There’s no doubt about it….life is a journey. “It’s not where you end up but how you got there” is often quoted as motivation to make the best of life no matter the circumstances. By the way, that quote is attributed to an “unknown source” but I think any of us could have said it! As Lady-Links, we’ve seen some difficult circumstances in the lives our our dear friends, those precious ladies in our community who are in various stages of cognitive impairment. Alzheimer’s and other related dementias fill our dear friends’ journeys with lots of difficulties: memory loss, confusion, repetitive speech and actions, restlessness, loss of communication skills, and more. So we talk in our training sessions about how to make that journey a little bit better for each of our dear friends during our weekly visits with them. At some point in their lives, there was joy in their journey. We look for ways to bring back some of that joy on the difficult road they’ve found themselves traveling.
Restoring Joy to the Journey
- We smile. In Proverbs 17:22 it says, “A cheerful heart is good medicine….” A smile conveys that we enjoy being with our dear friends which helps them feel valued and appreciated. There’s joy in each and every smile we give. Medical professionals make it clear that socialization with our dear friends brings benefits that no medicine can.
2. We engage them in activities they can still enjoy. This gives our dear friends purpose, confidence, self-assurance, and the feeling of doing something productive. There’s joy in connecting with one another, and we do that through crafts, games, conversations, celebrations, and strategies we use for sharing memories.
When we do those two simple things, we are certain that we are adding joy to their journey while they are “getting there” even if it is a destination they wouldn’t have selected if they were given a choice.
But isn’t that what friends are for? Helping each other to make the best of their journey even when the traveling is rough. We call these sweet ladies our “dear friends” for a reason. They are dear to us and they are our friends. Their journeys are our journeys, and we are committed to bringing joy however and wherever their journey leads.
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