Laughter truly can be the best medicine.

My mom has had quite a year and she will tell you if you visit her that it has not been easy.  A failing hip led to a move from an independent living house to an independent apartment in the “big house” at Copeland Oaks in Ohio.  Months of pain and anxiety while waiting for the much needed hip surgery left her feeling a bit isolated.

Successful surgery, an extended stay in a rehabilitation facility and a move to an assisted living apartment immediately following discharge from rehab and my poor mom has experienced more change than she anticipated. At 87 years old these changes are not always the easiest to handle.  An additional challenge of memory loss and my mom does not have always have the sunny disposition that she was known for.

Last week when I visited her for a few days I was trying to come up with some things we could do.  Things other than cleaning out her closet and sorting and discarding things.  Fun things.   We ended up looking at photo albums and even though a lot of the pictures did not ring a bell with who was in them I think she enjoyed it.   We also looked at the scrapbook that I made her for her 80th birthday celebration and it reminded me of how much work I put into it.

Of course there was laughter and giggling but honestly the best thing I did was invite one of her friends to dinner.  She was so looking forward to seeing her friend Pat and talked about it all week when I was there.  We didn’t have anything special, just lasagna, but it was the idea of having dinner in her own apartment with a friend that made the difference.

The laughter and smiles were the best thing I saw and heard all week.