Alice knows. She’s 89 and she works at her health. She is a widow and lives alone.
My husband and I just spent some time
visiting my mother-in-law, Alice, and we were pleased to see that she is
taking such good care of herself. We are among the lucky ones, as Alice
has no cognitive problems. She still drives. I got in the car with her
and did my “ride along assessment.” She’s still safe.
He suggested physical therapy, along with some stretches she can do at
home. She got right to it. She got out of the car after the appointment
and was doing the stretches as she waited while my husband and I stopped
at a coffee place. As we walked back, cups in hand, we saw mom,
standing by the car, one hand on it for balance, bending forward with
legs crossed as directed, and working at her stretches already. Go,
Alice!
She was married for 62 years and misses her husband terribly. But, she
plays cards with friends, takes two classes each year at the local
university extension, and reaches out to people. She makes an effort to
address her lonely times. She learned to use a computer at age 86, with
my patient husband teaching her.
She loves her Kindle. She reads a lot and thinks it’s the greatest invention ever.
Life for Alice is not perfect, but it’s
pretty good indeed. She’s planning a cruise for the family to join her
for her 90th birthday celebration next year.
What can the rest of us learn from all
this? We can see that there is wisdom in the prediction that “we can
prevent about 80 percent of heart disease, about 90 percent of diabetes,
and about 70 percent of stroke if we make the right food choices, get
physical activity and don’t smoke.”
source punch
No comments:
Post a Comment