Walkin' & Rollin' to End Alzheimer's

Sunday morning we walked and rolled in the Walk to End Alzheimer's.

G and I participated the first time in 2004
when it was called the Memory Walk,
and his diagnosis of vascular dementia was just 6 months old.
He got a T-shirt.

The next year we were out of town and couldn't attend.

The subsequent years
he either wasn't interested in going with me on the walk,
or wasn't able to handle it.

A few years ago, when he was having difficulty walking
and had begun to use a walker,
I suggested renting a wheelchair so he could go with me.

He wasn't interested.
Perhaps being in a wheelchair didn't fit his self-image.
Or maybe it was the apathy that has been the hallmark
of his journey with the disease.

But now we have a transport chair at home for when he needs it,
so riding in a wheeled chair is not so foreign.

And when I told him a few days ago
that thanks to the generosity of our family and friends,
he and I were currently the top fundraisers for our local walk
and would he like to join me this year,
he said yes.
That he thought it was important that he be there.

I thought it was important, too.

Weather in the low 50's and cloudy,
so we are bundled up in multiple layers for the walk,
G in a borrowed wheelchair.

P.S. It is someone special's birthday today,
but she told me last week she didn't want a fuss made.
So we'll keep it low profile.
Happy Birthday, dear one!