Visiting A Friend

A friend of mine and I have been visiting a mutual friend who is in a specialized nursing care facility for individuals struggling with dementia.

Today our mutual friend was uncharacteristically at ease.  We found her sitting down in an easy chair in the Activity Room, eating a bag of Cheez-its.

Our friend has reached the point where she really can't contribute to a conversation, other than responding to a direct question that only requires a "yes" or "no" answer.  But we still try to catch her up on current events.

At one point, she reached into her bag of Cheez-its, looked right at me and then handed a single Cheez-it to me. She kept this up at intervals during our time together. And it impressed me: What a generous, gracious act to offer a bit of her snack. A strong sign of the loving, thoughtful person she had been and was trying to remain, even though the loss of memory had severely curtailed her ability to contribute to the conversation. She wanted us to know that she was still present somehow.