A Question About Alzheimer’s

Alzheimer’s disease is a disorder that is associated with progressive dementia that ultimately terminates in death.  What would it be like to lose many if not all of your memories?  If you had to rely on notes to yourself to remind you of who you are and what you are about as a person, what would you write down?

I have a hard time with certain memories as it is now. Names and dates tend to leave my brain almost instantly. I can barely remember what I had for breakfast. My short-term memory is just really bad. I’ve learned a lot to help it by using numbers as they are the only thing I’m good at remembering. But if I lost all of my memories and basically had to read a diary every morning, here are a few things I might put in there:

“Your name is Michael.

You have a wife named Angela and a daughter named Nicole.

Your wife is that lovely woman you see on your phone when you press the button. Your daughter is the girl next to her.

Your wife is a very loving person. She is kind. She works too hard but she does a good job at anything she puts her mind to.

Your daughter likes to whine now, but hopefully that’ll go away one day. If she’s not doing it the next time you see her, make sure to tell her she’s doing a good job. Otherwise, she is very smart. So be careful about anything she asks. She might be trying to get away with something.

The four animals belong to your family. The black cat is Sega. She likes to lay on you at night. The big black dog is Solitaire. She likes to lick faces and play volleyball with balloons. The pug is Sora. She’s your wife’s dog. And the rat, I mean little dog, is Sony. He’s your best bud. Make sure to let him get in your arms and say hi or else he’ll bark at you all day.

You are a writer. On the computer is a file your wife will point out to you. Read it. And then add to it. You’ll be able to once you’re caught up. Just don’t forget to not try to make it into a novel. You’ll have a hard time catching up tomorrow. Just sell the short stories.

Also, if it is Monday or Wednesday, you’re going to have company at 4:30pm. You mentor a few boys. Your job is only to play games with them and help them with their school work. Don’t worry. You’ll like them.

Before bed, make sure to add anything else to this you might want to remember. But keep it short. Thanks!”

I am my family. That’s why I listed them first.

(This question was posted to my college forums and this was my answer. I decided to share with you guys. What would your answer be?)