when moving away is more difficult

With our last relocation, we moved pretty far away from "home". But then again, we moved so many times before then that "home" has proven to be a rather elusive word. I can't really decide what was "home" for me anymore. Is it where I grew up? I guess, but I moved may times during that time period as well.

We now live a hefty distance from our last "home" which also happens to be where our parents live, as well as my grandmother. Our relationship with our parents is typical - we miss them when we haven't seen them for a while, but spending any more than a few days with them reminds us of why we had no problem moving away. On the other hand, my grandmother is the sweetest lady on Earth, and I feel so bad that the kids are growing up not knowing her very well.

She's getting pretty old now, and her memory has started to go, which makes things more difficult when trying to plan visits. I wanted to see if I could get her to come out and visit us, but it sounds like having her fly by herself won't work. She has gotten to the point where she is dependent on my mother for just about everything. She can't remember to take her medication. She doesn't remember to eat if not reminded. It's heart-breaking for us to see her this way.

One of the latest opps at PPP reminded me of her, because it is for the Alzheimer's Foundation of America. While most of us feel quite helpless around our again loved ones that have afflicted with alzheimer's, it is good to know that there are foundations out there that are doing their best to investigate the illness and hopefully find a cure, while at the same time they aren't forgetting the treatment and care of those already suffering.

Of course, donating money is one of those things that many people place on their "to do list" but rarely get around to doing it. Fortunately, the AFA has taken it a step further and created an online store that people can shop at, with their purchases benefiting the AFA. This way, they take advantage of the fact that everybody remembers to do their Christmas shopping, and they allow people to show their support by purchasing a holiday gift for their loved ones.



While I find it rather sad that people feel like they have to have some sort of incentive to donate to these types of charitable organizations, I applaud the AFA for realizing that there are consumers out there who like the idea of their money going towards a worthy cause, but prefer not to send cash.