Hands...

I have hands just like my mothers. During my married years, after we would return home from a visit to Louisiana, I would be wiping a counter top and look at my hand and realize it looked exactly like my mom's hand. This last Monday, Mimi got very ill. Papa went to feed her at lunch, as is his daily habit. He called me immediately when he got home and just as I was about to go out the door to the dentist for my 6 month check and cleaning. He said Mimi had hurled her breakfast and wasn't willing to eat at lunch. She was burning up with fever, pale as a white sheet, and they weren't sure what was wrong. She was in her bed, in her room, and had not been up all day. (Usually Mimi is dressed and taken to the multi-purpose room for breakfast. She spends a good deal of her day sitting at a table there and takes all 3 meals in this room.) Mimi was also rolling her eyes and twitching a lot. Papa was very concerned. I told him I had to head to the dentist but after I would meet him to practice music for Wednesday and then we would both go to the nursing home and check on her again. He was pleased with that plan that is what we did. When we got there Mimi's fever was down a bit and she had some color. She was still not good at all. They took a culture and tested for flu. This test came back negative, Mimi did not have the flu. They called her doctor and he suggested they get a urine sample and check for urinary tract infection. This was the diagnosis they settled on. We left Mimi resting. Her doctor came that afternoon and checked her. They began giving her injections for this infection. Tuesday Mimi was still not great but did eat and hold down some food for Papa at lunch. She stayed in her bed all day. Wednesday I went in to sing with Papa. Claude took me in because we had plans to go directly from the nursing home to LaGrange to watch the mini-Marx's so Michael and Andie could have their anniversary dinner. Then to watch Bailey the next morning so Andie could take Hayden to a play. Claude dropped me off at the nursing home and headed out to complete his chore list of in-town stuff while I sang with Papa. When I entered the multi-purpose room, Papa was set up and had about 15 minutes until time to sing but Mimi was not in the room. Since she was a little better Tuesday, I somehow expected her to be sitting at her table to listen to the music. Papa told me he didn't think she would be able to come down yet. I told him I was going to sit with her until time to sing and I headed for her room. I found Mimi pale again and very hot to the touch. I raised the head of her bed and spent the next 15 minutes getting her to drink as much of the water they had for her as I could. Then I lowered the bed and headed back to sing with Papa. I stopped at the nurses station on the way and talked with Helen, telling her how hot Mimi was. She said they had taken her temperature and it was normal not long before. I assured her Mimi was burning up and that I had managed to get a lot of her water in her. Papa and I started to sing and while we were singing Lucy, the other head nurse, came and spoke quietly to us and suggested we call her doctor again and ask about getting her to the hospital for further testing. They had taken her temp again and it was 102 degrees. With the antibiotic for the urinary tract infection, it should not be doing that. We assured her that was fine. Dr. Weckman told Lucy to have an ambulance take Mimi to the Georgetown Regional Hospital and run tests. I finished my part of the program with Papa and whispered in his ear the suggestion that Claude and he give Mimi a blessing before she was to be taken to the hospital. He thought that was a great idea. I left Papa to finish his music program and get his musical instruments and amplifiers into his car. I called Claude and had him bring oil, and I went to sit with Mimi. She was reaching out into the air like she was trying to touch someone and talk with them. I would hold her hand and she would calm down. I just told Mimi that Papa and Claude were going to give her a blessing so she would have peace and calm. Claude got to the nursing home and Papa came to Mimi's room. The Ford's had come down to Mimi's room also to visit her. Doris is a resident in the nursing home and her husband, Jim, was with her. They love Papa's music and they love Mimi and Papa. Papa invited them to stay for the blessing. Papa asked Claude to pronounce the blessing. Claude gave Mimi a beautiful blessing. It was a most tender moment. The Ford's left to give us some quiet time with Mimi before she went to the hospital. Before the ambulance drivers arrived, Jim Ford came back into Mimi's room. He asked that we tell him when the funeral would be so that he and Doris could come. His voice broke as he spoke. I thanked him and assured him they would know if something happened. Jim left and Papa had me tell him what Jim said because he couldn't hear. I told Papa what Jim said. Then the ambulance drivers arrived and took Mimi away. Papa drove to the hospital to be with Mimi. Claude and I headed to LaGrange. As Claude and I were driving, I commented to him that I thought Jim thought the blessing was like last rites like they do in the Catholic church when someone was going to die. Doris and Jim are members of a protestant church, I'm not sure which one, and so they are not familiar with priesthood blessings. I made sure I told Papa about this concern so he could have a teaching moment the next time he saw them and make sure they didn't think we administered last rites to Mimi.

Papa called us when he got home from the hospital. He said the hospital found nothing additional the matter with Mimi that would require hospitalization. So they took her back to the nursing home. Papa headed home for dinner. He was exhausted. This morning Papa called and said he was sick with a stomach bug and couldn't leave his apartment. I assured him Mimi was well taken care of and that Claude and I were going to stop and visit her at the nursing home in the afternoon on our way back to Sadieville. We got to the nursing home and found one of the nurses helping Mimi walk to the multi-purpose room in preparation for dinner. Claude and I both had anticipated her being in her room. It was an absolute delight to see her, albeit a little unsteady, walking to the multi-purpose room. We stayed and visited with her for a good while. During the visit, Helen was getting the meds ready to be given to residents that needed them before dinner. Somehow Mimi and Helen connected across the room. Helen raised her hand and waved at Mimi. I was absolutely amazed as Mimi smiled and waved back at Helen. Then Helen came in and visited with us. She said that they had given mom fluids intravenously in the emergency room and also taken another urine sample. They were sure she had a viral infection and not a bacterial one. Helen figures Papa has the same thing except it is manifesting a little differently in him. It appears the fluids really helped Mimi perk up. I think Papa will stay home one more day so that he and Mimi don't re-infect each other. Mimi ate a good breakfast and lunch today in the multi-purpose room so she is on a mending trend again.

As I sat with mom and held her hand I remembered I had my camera in my purse. I got it and took this picture of Mimi holding my hand. I think it is going to be one of my favorite pictures. We can tell a lot by a person's hands. Both my mom and I have brown spots (age spots I think they are called). Our blood vessels stand up on our hands. Jake always thought that was way cool and wanted to have blood vessels that stood out like that. Mimi and I have long fingers (good for me to play the piano with). My mother always had long, strong finger nails. I remember playing with them in church as a child so that I would sit quietly. Today Bailey was playing with mine as we watched a television show. Mimi's hands worked every spare minute making things and so do mine. I enjoyed holding Mimi's hand today. She doesn't know me, she just likes my visits and trusts me. I'm grateful for being able to have her still enjoy my touch and it be a calming influence for her as she continues this long Alzheimer's journey. It is an awful thing in so many ways but it has provided me with so many tender memories and moments of acute awareness of what is really, really important in life.