Time Keeps On Ticking

No one likes it, but it is inevitable - we all get older every second of every day. It sucks. Sucks to realize how old you yourself have gotten. Sucks even more to see the people around you deteriorate. I have 3 sets of grandparents and for the most part they have all been in fairly good health. I do have one grandpa who's been in a nursing home for about a year because of back and hip issues. Grandpa Henderson falls too easily and he lived alone, so he decided the nursing home would be the best place for him to be. My Grandma and Grandpa Rose seem to be hanging in there okay. Grandma has health issues: she's diabetic, unstable on her feet and prone to falling, recently suffered a heart attack that left no permanent damage. But Grandpa is able to take care of her and they live next door to my parents, so they are in good shape.

But they all just keep getting older. Now my Grandma Henderson is unable to get herself around and can't keep her medicines straight. My parents have to stop by twice a day to dispense her pills to her and make sure they witness her taking them. They've been talking with my Aunt about finding a nursing home for her. She's no longer able to live alone.

And yesterday I received news that my Grandpa Beeson was being taken to the hospital again. He suffered a major stroke 2 years ago that really affected him and his health has gotten increasingly worse since then. Now they've found a slight bit of congestive heart failure. With that diagnosis and all the other health issues he's been having, the doctors have suggested that he be admitted into a nursing home. He is simply requiring too much care for Grandma to continue taking care of him. They admitted him into the hospital for 3 days, but during that time a decision has to be made about where to locate him when he's released.

I never have wanted to get old. I've always been afraid of being old and alone. I don't want my family to see me crippled up and feeble minded. It's not fair that one day someone will be sitting in a hospital waiting room faced with making the decision about whether I get to go home or not. It's a horrible decision. Who's going to be upset the most? Who's going to be the most burdened by it? It sucks. But time doesn't care, time keeps on ticking.