Tiptoe into senililty

My 91 year old aunt was at our Christmas family gathering yesterday. She was frail and couldn't walk, and sometimes forgot who we were or that we had already said hello, but otherwise she was spry and in good humor.

As we were talking, she took part in the conversation by stating that her Grandmother was 100 years old. Naturally, we thought she was "lost" somewhere in time, and we didn't think we had an ancestor that lived that long, so there were multiple voices of "Oh really?" and "Wow!" and "How about that!"

Then silence.

A few seconds passed and suddenly Aunt Ola spoke up and said "I was lying."

OMG, the room roared with laughter!!

It's such a paradox dealing with the elderly who have tiptoed into senility but don't always stay there. You never know if they are serious or if they are actually trying to make you laugh.

My Father was the same way. He had Alzheimer's and he had such a good sense of humor. I remember many times he had to tell us he was joking and we were relieved, but also sad because he had to tell us he was joking.

God bless them all!

Long live laughter - it IS the best medicine.