On Tuesday for school I had to go (Justin went on Wednesday) a place called Share Your Care. It was a really neat little program in our community that I had not really heard much about. There are 7 sites in Albuquerque that have programs for Alzheimer's patients, those with mental health issues, and those with developmental delays. We spent 5 hours with the Alzheimers patients, and it was such a fun time!! We played games, read the newspaper, helped them with snacks and lunch, did exercises with them, and helped them make hair clips. They really enjoyed having the company and we enjoyed spending time with them. We met a woman whose daughter was the previous NM Secretary of State, a woman who had dated Dean Martin (which was confirmed by her daughter who had the pictures to prove it), and to get to hear each of their stories was really interesting.
It also made me thankful for my abilities - for the things that I suppose I take for granted on a day to day basis - like walking, talking, being able to go to the restroom alone, being able to feed myself, hearing, seeing, and thinking. One day we will all get old, and I'm excited to be in a position where I've had great life experiences, but at the same time it makes me realize that in order to get to that point I need to live well now. I need to make good memories, have fun, spend time with people important to me, and just live life to the fullest. In the end the story of our lives are built by the choices that we make in the now. When we are old and grey, and telling others the stories of our lives, what will our story say about how we lived?
