A merry heart doeth good like a medicine...

As a pharmacist, my Dad knows the power of medicine.  As a Christian, he knows the power of this scripture.

A merry heart doeth good like a medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.  Proverbs 17:22

I remember a calligraphy piece with this scripture (I *think* made by my Aunt Charlotte) hanging in the drug store for many years.  Never did I realize how true that verse would become in our lives.

We clung to it during my grandfather's battle with vascular dementia and my grandmother's battle with alzheimer's.  Now, we are clinging to it as their baby boy, my Dad, battles Lewy Body Dementia. 

Dad wanted to be sure I shared these things with you.  You see, he hasn't lost his sense of humor.  He laughs at his situation at times.  We all joke and laugh...it's one way to cope.  We can't control the situation, but we can control our attitudes.

LBD causes violent dreaming at times.  One night a few weeks ago, Dad was thrashing around and almost rolled out of bed.  Remember that the last time he pulled this stunt, he ended up with a glued together cheek, a broken nose, and 6 stitches above his eye.  We HAVE moved the nightstand since then, but we still don't want a repeat.  Anyway...the first two times he did this, Mom quickly grabbed his arm and held onto him.  The third time, she didn't make it.  He rolled out of bed, spun around on his feet, and proclaimed, "I hit a homerun that time!!"  It made them both laugh.  He wasn't referring to baseball, he was referring to his amazing feat!!  It sounded exactly like something my Pop (Dad's dad) would've said!!!

One day shortly thereafer, Dad realized he had forgotten to turn in some important paperwork related to the selling of Big C.  I said, "Just tell them you have dementia so you forgot."  We giggled at that, too! 

The other day, one of my first grade students prayed that God would make my Dad's "brain smarter."  It was so heartfelt and precious, but it made me and Dad chuckle.

I'm thankful I have a Dad who can laugh at the absurdity of LBD.  He can maintain a cheerful heart during trying times because he knows WHO holds his future securely. 

Now, the picture is not always rosy.  Dad isn't always laughing or joking.  The last few days his jerks and tremors have been much worse, and he has been physcially wiped out, hardly getting out of bed except to eat.  He  was holding a bottle of water the other day and he jerked involuntarily and dropped his bottle spilling it all over the floor.  He immediately burst out crying.  I'm glad he can face his sadness, too, and not just laugh it all off.

There are days our cheerful hearts are a good medicine,

 and there are days LBD is a tough pill to swallow.