Last week I described how a member of our club could make a plan in case dementia sets in, and the staff at the club would be responsible for seeing that the plan is implemented. Dementia is a very sneaky disease. Most people in the mid stages of dementia don’t know they have dementia. In fact, they will vehemently deny it. Bad things, terrible things, can happen when someone has dementia and does not know that they have dementia. Fortunes can be lost. Lives can be lost. There are many, many factual stories of dementia sufferers giving away money or being taken advantage of by scam artists, killing people while driving, and shooting people. There are other true stories of dementia sufferers stripping off their clothes and running around the neighborhood. And there are other stories of dementia sufferers wandering off and causing mayhem for their loved ones and the local officials who are trying to find them. All these stories come with costs attached to them: the loss of happy memories, the loss of wasted time, the loss of money that could have been used for better purposes.

I hate waste. Maybe it is the Scottish in me, but my earliest memories were of taking care not to waste. Remember those commercials about sending young disadvantaged people to college with the slogan: “A mind is a terrible thing to waste”? So it is. No matter what the age of the mind. I don’t want my mind to go to waste, but I may not be able to stop it from going to waste if I become demented.  In that case, the best I can do is make a plan now, while I am in my right mind. Without a plan, if I do become demented, I could cause more waste.

Ultimately, God is in control, and His will be done. He expects us to use the talents he has bestowed on us for His glory. And God wants us to serve Him by serving others. I won’t be able to serve others if I am demented…or at least my capacity to serve will be more and more limited. In that case, others will be needed to serve me. Is that what the “circle of life” is about? As a baby I needed to be served, then I served others, then as an older adult I will need to be served again if I live long enough. Even if I don’t have dementia.

Please do make a plan for yourself. And share it with your family or whoever you choose to be the one in control if you lose your ability to communicate meaningfully. And make sure your health care professionals have permission to share your health information with the person(s) of your choosing. Best to have a few emergency back up persons. Life is full of surprises.