I Gave the Chickens to a Farmer

Kamál (Perfection), 14 Mashíyyat (Will), 167 BE – Monday, October 10, 2011 about 10:45 AM Pacific Time

This morning Mom asked, “Where are the chickens?”

My response, “What chickens?” I have to remember not to ask the “what” question, when asks me about where animals or people are because sometimes she gets upset. She did not get upset this morning.

Mom said, “I thought we had chickens.”

My response, “We could not get a permit, so I gave the chickens to a farmer.”

When Mom was a child, she lived on a farm in Oklahoma and they had chickens. When my grandparents moved to Blackwell, the also had chickens. I suspect Mom still thinks she lives in Blackwell, Oklahoma. I have not broached the subject because I do not want to get Mom upset. My answer seemed to satisfy her, so I will leave it at that right now.

When dealing with an Alzheimer’s patient, you have to put yourself in their world. Mom does not remember attending her parents’ funerals; she thinks they are still alive. Mom does not think she is 90 years old, which is another subject I have no intention of broaching.

If Mom brings up the subject of the chickens again, I will take an egg from the refrigerator, cook it, and tell her the farmer brought us some eggs from the chickens we gave him. It will make Mom happy and I really do not think the store where I buy my eggs cares what I tell Mom about them.