We don't have a lot of "normalcy" around here
... or at least around Atria ... these days. It's like going
through Alice's rabbit hole when you are let into the memory unit and you
never know what to expect. If I'm lucky, she's in a good mood, which
means that we pretty much stare at each other for an hour while she asks me
if she lives there and who this or that person is in a picture she
indicates...and whether or not her mother is still alive.
If it's like last week, she is in another
zone entirely. You can't convince her that she is not in a situation
where everybody hates her because she's done something terrible, but doesn't
know what she has done. (And if I'm very unlucky, I'm to blame for all
of her problems.)
If I'm very lucky, she's in a giddy, chatty
mood where everything tickles her fancy and we spend a lot of time laughing.
What rarely happens is a "normal" day.
Days when I take her out to lunch are more or less normal, except for the
endless questioning about where she is. But she used to go out to
lunch with friends frequently and it's always pleasant to go out to lunch
with her. I wish I could afford to take her out to lunch more often,
because I really enjoy it, and she does too.
Haircut days are also normal day. She
used to have her hair done once a week for years and was good friends
with her hairdresser. Hannah. I last took her to see Hannah a couple
of years ago when she needed a permanent. It cost so much money, I
didn't take her back again, since Lucy, the beautician at Atria, does a fine
job for much less money.
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I'd been putting off making an appointment for her. She's several weeks past when it should have been done. Her hair has been so long and stringy, hanging in her eyes, often looking fly-away and giving her that "Wicked Witch of the West" look. I'd only put off making an appointment because either I didn't have my calendar, or it was Lucy's day off and I couldn't reach her. But today, she finally had an appointment. |
She was in good spirits when I got to Atria.
She was napping, but got up right away. When she opened her eyes, her
first word were "Well...I have a sister." When I told her that
no, she had a daughter she came more to life and sat up.
I told her we were going to get her hair done
and there was no argument. She just immediately put on her shoes and
was ready to go.
It's always such fun watching her interacting
with Lucy. It's one of those "normal" times. Other then telling
Lucy that people always ask where she gets her hair done (she's thinking of
when Hannah used to do it), they chatter away just like the old days.
And in the end, though she never thought she
needed a haircut to begin with, she's delighted with how she looks.
We returned to her apartment and she sat
down, dazed, and asked if this is where she was going to live from now on.
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