Adele - 2024 09 17

 


Soy wax, ink wash, graphite, pen and ink, pencil crayon, oil pastel on paper 7 1/2" x 11" - in progress

This morning Mom was struggling for the strength to sit up to be able to get from the bed to the commode. Adele was up and circling the room, doing what she could to help but, in fact, getting under foot. We got through the toilet operation and Mom back on the bed for her rice crispies. Once Mom was settled, Adele curled up in Mom's big chair to wait for the next event in our action-packed morning.

I was up with Mom at 1130 pm last night to give her pepto bismal for heartburn, and again at 4 am to toilet and give her a bottle of Ensure.

Mom is going through a difficult time right now as we sort out what foods she can eat, what level of strength she has available, how laboured is her breathing, and how much pain she is coping with from her arthritic knees. 

Just now Adele gave an alert bark for me that Mom was on the move, just as I heard the light tapping of her cane coming from her room. Mom had managed to get herself dressed and was determined to get off the bed and into the big chair.

Adele was a rescue from Thailand, initially homed with a first time dog owner who found her housing situation could not work for an almost feral, ferociously dog aggressive, traumatized young adult dog. We guess that she was about five years old when we adopted her in October, 2018. It has been six years, so she is maybe eleven years old now. Her muzzle is getting quite white, which supports this theory.

Adele is my constant companion in this mission to give Mom a home and the dignity to let her live out her final days with family and friends nearby. Adele is never far from my side, waiting until she sees where I am settling down to work and then picking one of her many bed / sleeping spots to curl up and doze. Our daily routines are organized around feeding and walking, time for napping, and a little time for tricks and playing with stuffed animals. Adele never hurts her stuffed animals. She still has the stuffed snowman that Matt gave her when she first came to live with us.

Our dog reactive, people friendly rescue dog is an essential member of Mom's caregiving team. Without her, the tedium, uncertainty and loneliness of this work would be unbearable. 

Today she is watching over us, with an eye out for any surprise encroachments from behind. 

The dishwasher is gurgling, the floors need sweeping, the beds need to be made. I am still in my pyjamas. Mom is wrapped in a shawl in her big chair, Adele is curled up on the couch beside her.

It is Tuesday. Better get a move on.



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