Today my family participated in the Alzheimer's Association Memory Walk 2008 at the Dallas Zoo in honor of our late grandmother, Sally (Ganny) Loehr. It was a breezy 42 degrees outside so we bundled up and headed out into the wind. The whole event is growing every year and the administrators are still playing catch up to organize everything. The "walk" was chaotic and the path was not super clear, but at the end of the day we appreciated why we were really there. It was a time for our family to come together other than the usual celebrated holidays in order to celebrate someone's life who we love and miss deeply. Ganny was always the life of any party and loved being with people. ANY event automatically turned into a "party" when she was involved. I remember her as vibrant, outgoing, silly and extremely fair. She was sometimes a bit awkward when it came to showing affection, but I always knew I was loved. She survived a house full of 3 sons and a husband so she should get a lot of credit! Her final years of life were strained and sometimes frustrating. The saddest part was seeing her turn into someone we didn't know. Alzheimer's is a crippling disease and is currently the 6th leading cause of death in the US. I learned that statistic today - frightening. And since Alzheimer's is hereditary I fear for the worst. Others in our family have suffered from it as well. So, please take a moment to hug those you love and tell them how special they are to you because life is short and we never know what hand we've been dealt.
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