Patience in Practice

I should have known.

When you’re watching videos about having patience with your LOWD (loved one with dementia – see, I’m learning all sorts of things!!) you have to know that you’re going to have that patience tested, sooner rather than later.

Sure enough, I had barely walked in the door yesterday when M showed me the birthday card he had bought for me and signed with “Love you!” (he never signs his name to anything anymore. Just “love you!” I guess I’d rather have “love you!” than just his name, but I’d really like both.)

ANYWAY . . .

He was so happy that he had gotten me a birthday card. But my birthday was two months ago.

I wasn’t going to say anything, but he asked, “Isn’t it your birthday?” So I told him no, it isn’t, but we went out with dad last night for my birthday dinner (yes, dad was running late with that!) so that’s probably what he was thinking about.

No, he said. That’s not it.

I could see he was starting to get upset, so I thought about what I could do to turn it around. I told him if we were going to celebrate my birthday, we needed to have a cake and that I wish he had gotten one – and that diverted his attention and got him laughing.

Fortunately, it all ended on a good note.

I had dinner last night at a friend’s house and we had yet another thunderstorm while I was there. It’s getting to be an every evening occurrence. But it was lovely, sitting on her screened-in back porch while several storms rolled through.

When I got home, M was waiting at the garage door for me, having a fit. He had been worried about me. Which was so sweet – but unnecessary. I was safer, sitting at my friend’s house, than I am driving home from work every day. And he never worries about that.

But I guess, because the storm had the dogs upset, he was on edge, too.

Another opportunity to practice patience! I thanked him for being concerned – and broke out the fudgesicles.

There’s not much in this world that can’t be made better with ice cream.