We laid a dear friend to rest today. His name was AC, yep A (only) C (only) many people called him Tac. He was just a good ole boy who worked hard to take care of his family, he was a good friend to my parents, he had a huge smile, and a lot of us are going to miss him.

As is natural when someone passes away you think of the times that you shared together. The memories are both good and bad. Too many good memories to list and the bad being that as time passed we didn’t see each other as much as we would like and that he had had a daughter and daughter in law preceded him in death. The thing is if AC had actually been at the kitchen table with us it would have been a hard conversation for him to have because he had Alzheimer’s.The military was there at his funeral because he had served in the Airforce. We wept as taps played and we wept again when they handed his widow the American flag that had draped his coffin. We also sat/stood there with masks on our faces because of the virus. There is a part of me that thinks he would have found that tremendously funny. I know a part of my head said this is really weird. He would have found the humor in the fact that I had to lift my mask so his widow would know who I was…we were talking and I could tell she didn’t know who I was. I asked her and she said, “your so and so’s daughter, I said, “no”. I actually dropped one side of my mask revealing my face and she said, “your Ed’s daughter!” And then we chatted like were not at a funeral but two friends merely catching up.

Memories are a funny thing. You get people together and a story is told and someone else remembers it a little differently than the storyteller. An interesting debate sometimes starts. Some people don’t remember the event at all. It doesn’t mean they have a neurological problem it just means that event didn’t stick for some reason. What is not funny is how Ahlzhemiers can steal memories real or imagined. I know as I get older there are days when I think that I have Alzheimer’s do you? Those days are the worst, you can’t remember why you entered a room, or you look for your glasses that are on your head. You know you don’t really have it you just need to slow down and pay more attention but just for a moment you think maybe…and there are for other people that this will be the start of the disease starting its toll. Don’t be too proud to get it checked out. AC was actually diagnosed 14 years ago and medicines helped him fight the good fight.

Well AC you “Good Ole Daddy” as the faith we shared promises us, you have a renewed body now, and with that comes a renewed memory. I know the reunion with your daughter who has been gone 27 years now was amazing as was the reunion with your daughter in law. Until we see each other again – thanks for the memories.

Help fight Alzheimer’s at https://act.alz.org