Dad is doing great today. He actually kept on the plastic shield until this morning. His eye looks great and he is in good spirits. We slept until 9:15, which was nice. I can tell more and more that not getting good, deep sleep is wearing on me. I guess the last time I had really good sleep was when we went to the beach in July. Simon stayed with Dad so I could run to the flea market to get magnetic bracelets for my friend, Maria. After I got there, I found out that the man who sells them was not there. Shoot! When I got home, Dad was still sitting at the bar where I left him. He had been looking through papers and magazines and catalogs. He's been back and forth between the bar and his recliner ever since. It seems I can never catch up around here. Time goes by way too fast. I've come to realize that so many things in life come down to time and money. Most people don't have enough of either! As I grow older, and watch my Dad's decline with age and dementia, I also realize that we can live our lives more for time, or more for money. Time is the most precious gift we have to give another. How people spend their time says a lot. Caregivers give time more than anything. I feel sad for those caregivers out there who have no support. I hope they will learn to reach out to those around them and that others will see their need and respond. As fortunate as I am, it is never easy. I said once, that after thinking about how much Mom had done in caring for Dad, I had the easy part. I believe that, but it is still difficult. There are many relationships and dynamics between relationships. We are all in it together. I got news this morning that Viola, my dad's cousins wife, had died. She loved for us to come visit. I had hoped to get Dad out to see her, but never made "time". It was interesting that I was thinking about caring and giving and I went to make myself a cup of tea. On the box was a quote from The Art of Giving by Kent Nerburn: "Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance, and none can say why some fields will blossom and others lay brown beneath the August sun. Care for those around you. Look past your differences. Their dreams are no less than yours, their choices in life no more easily made. And give. Give in any way you can, of whatever you possess. To give is to love. To withhold is to wither. Care less for your harvest than how it is shared, and your life will have meaning and your heart will have peace." The only thing I would change, is that I believe we are children of God, and not of chance. I believe Jesus came to tell us to give. Slow down this holiday season and enjoy. I'll try to do the same........ Susie