It's About Time

My sister, Laura, lived in El Paso and was just so isolated. She had several bad encounters with the neighbors that were affecting her quite a bit. Sometimes when one lives alone with little social contact one begins to live in an alternate reality that becomes too real to themselves. Her sons and I decided that it was time to move her to a more secure environment. We moved her to a private assisted living home in Mesa. I took her to the necessary doctors to have her physical and mental health evaluated. Luckily, everything is finally smoothed out. She is quite healthy other than her high blood pressure and extreme anxiety and paranoia. Now that she is on the appropriate medication visiting her every week is a joy. We are going to new restaurants and she is loving every minute we spend together. Her short term memory is extremely affected, but she sure can remember the past. Now that her mental and physical issues are under control she is happy and her caregivers enjoy her company. They are getting very attached and bonding. She remembers all she had (material things) in El Paso and wishes she still had access. Unfortunately, it is not possible to bring a lifetime of accumulations into one room. My mother lived with us the last 3 1/2 years of her life and died at 92. I have learned a lot about dementia and geriatric maladies. Laura is my last family member so I hope to have more years to spend with her. Getting old is an uncharted world filled with issues, illnesses, deaths of loved ones and uncertain tomorrows.No amount of exercising, face lifts, tummy tucks, or breast enhancements make one bit of difference to our appointed road.  

New Year, new goals for my blog. It has sat and sat and I have not posted since I don't really believe anyone cares what I'm doing so . . . . I'm going to talk about the books I read. At least this way I can remember what I've enjoyed.

I just finished reading The Dark Monk (a Hangman's Daughter Tale). Lately most of the mysteries I've been attracted to have a strong historical leaning. This novel/mystery takes place in the Bavarian Alps in 1660. Not knowing anything about hangmen and the fact he has a headstrong independent thinking daughter, Magdalena, made me want to learn more. Being a hangman is a necessary occupation, if feared. Wife, daughter and anyone associated with him brings a strong stigma. The story starts with the death of a parish priest. Jacob, the hangman realizes that the priest was poisoned. As he and his daughter try to make sense of the murder the mystery begins to thicken with the addition of the possibility of of a Knights of Templar treasure. The son of the town's physician, Simon, cares for Magdalena even though their relationship is banned, joins in to learn what the priest knew that got him killed. So you have a hangman, a willful daughter, a well read physician's son, a sister of the murdered priest and 448 pages to heal the sick, learn historical customs, religious insanities, and follow the twisted tale to find the killer(s). The mystery itself was well done, but the immersion into such a lost world was the true reason I kept reading and I did not want the story to end. The epilogue and learning the family history of the author, Oliver Potzsch made the whole experience extremely satisfying.