'The end of life as we know it' isn't confined to dementia

Yesterday I heard about the death of an ex colleague.  We didn't work with each other for long but it was, at times, a difficult project with only the two of us actually on the ground day in, day out which meant we relied on each other,  He had skills I lacked such as attention to detail and the ability to look at a group of numbers without them scrambling in front of his eyes.  He also made me laugh on an almost daily basis.  Most of this was from a distance as we lived in completely different parts of the country but it all helped to make the project a success.  I haven't seen him since February this year but we have kept in touch with the occasional email.  The thing is that when I saw him last Ash had just been diagnosed with dementia and I thought my world had come to an end.  He on the other hand, although not particularly fit or healthy, had plans for his future.  There was no sign of the tumours growing inside his head and no reason to think that 11 months down the line he would no longer be with us.  My point here is that a diagnosis of dementia is not the end of the world, it doesn't have to be the worst thing that can happen to someone.  If I had to choose at this moment whether to be in my shoes or the shoes of my friend's family I know where I would rather be.

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Comments

Lesley said…
That's so sad. We had the most lovely chemist who was only in his forties when he died of a brain tumour. He left young children. You just don't know what is around the corner and trouble comes in many forms - all the more reason to enjoy every possible joy in every single day.
Sarah H said…
Yep - enjoy every day as if it is your last . . . appreciate the small things . . . stop worrying about things that are unimportant . . . and laugh a lot 🙂