MY NEW LIFE

I am in a facility now. The move happened quickly. It was out of my control. The reasons are not important. October 15,,2014.  The day I had to leave Lucie in the care of my neighbor. The day I said goodbye to my old life. The day I realized my life would never be the same again. 

Life here consists of waiting. Waiting to get up in the morning, waiting to go to the bathroom, waiting for just about everything. I am one of the twenty-four residents on my floor now. It is not just about me anymore. 

It's a struggle each day to see that my needs are met. I have to be my own advocate. No one can do it for me. I have also tried to help advocate for another resident on my floor. I am considering becoming an ombudsman or getting my license to practice social work sometime in the future. I don't know what the future has in store for me, but I do know that I want to do whatever I can to help make facilities better for all of us who live in them. That's the one positive thing that has come out of my being here. I know I want to help advocate for change.

Other than my change of address, my life is pretty much the same as it always was. I still am intent on becoming a freelance journalist, I travel into the city several times a week to volunteer at my library and still eat out with friends. The only difference is I take public transportation to my destinations now. That took some getting used to, but I think  I have gotten the hang of it. I still love to read, the only difference is I download books to my PC and Kindle now. Oh yeah, I am still a Cher fan too. I listen to music all the time here.

The saddest thing that has happened since I have been here being that Lucie has passed away. Lucie died on November 23, 2014. Five weeks after I left. I miss her daily, but  I am happy because she is with my mom now. I am thankful for all the love and care she received from my neighbor during her final weeks.

I still have a life. It may not be the life I had a year ago, but I am still as independent as I can be. I think for myself and make my own decisions just like I did before. I'm still me