Our oldest neighbor is Mr.Wetzel and he is 82 and very active and agile. It’s nice when we are able to see our older seniors still able to enjoy life and aren’t forgotten. Mr. Wetzel took care of his ailing wife for over 10 years with no help because his wife didn’t want anyone else around her, she died last year and it was hard for him because they were together for so long.
He is okay now and helps everyone in the community with their flowers. This man is very knowledgeable about growing anything and people from all over come to visit and get his advice. I snapped a picture of his little house on the corner and you can see some of his flowers and he always keeps his lawn picture perfect.
Bill went over and got a shot of Mr. Wetzel for me, I apoligize that I had his age wrong above instead of the 77 I had he is 82, so I have now changed it..
He grows all kinds of flowers in the front of his house and the back of his shed. He also has a pump that he hooks up to a huge barrel when it starts to rain so he can use that for watering everything. He now goes to many events and family functions and stays busy with his love of gardening and growing flowers.
If we don’t see him for a day then Bill always goes to check on him. Everyone always keeps an eye out for him. Mr. Wetzel has very good neighbors that care and that’s important. I wrote an article about our older seniors and the rise of depression so seniors such as Mr. Wetzel are a huge source of inspiration for me and I just wanted to share him with you.
I received this little guy and poem from Karen and Gerard Zemeks and I accept this award because I know it is heartfelt and sincere and Karen has always lent a caring and loving word of encouragement during some of my darkest days and for this I am very grateful.
We need friends for many reasons,
all throughout the season.
We need friends to comfort us
when we are sad,
and to have fun with us when we are glad.
We need friends to give us good advice,
We need someone we can count on,
and treat us nice.
We need friends to remember us
once we have passed
sharing memories that will always last.
As far as I could see there really weren’t rules for passing it on, but I will do so at a later date because it’s cool.
There seems to be a huge problem with depression in the elderly and it’s hard to believe that the National Institute of Health says that at least 35 million seniors in America over the age of 65 suffer from depression and at least 2 million from major depression. Many people believe that depression is a natural part of aging, but is that really true? As far as I can see there is nothing natural or normal about depression and no one should have to suffer.
It’s reported that more women at any age has more bouts with depression than men, but I think that’s because men simply haven’t been encouraged to show they have problems and it makes them appear weak if they do. Men have a harder time sharing than women do, but if you know the signs to look out for then you can easily tell when depression is present. I know when I was being treated for depression the women always out numbered the men. It seems depression for men is something to keep silent about.
As we get older it does seem that there are more unique circumstances to concern ourselves with because of numerous health issues that occur from aging, chronic pain and for many loss of independence. Our seniors from the generation they grew up in were taught to take it like a man and keep your personal issues to yourself and weren’t encouraged to talk about their feelings so as we all know many of the older seniors feel very uncomfortable doing so.
There is a wide assumption held that the aging process naturally causes a person to slow down, which in many cases it does, but just because your aging doesn’t mean you should lose interest in activities that once gave you joy. Many things can cause bouts of depression like prescription medications, declining financial situations, self-image issues brought on by surgery or disease. Feeling like you’ve lost your purpose in life because your children are grown.
Many feel because they no longer hold down a job that they have nothing left to contribute and these things can increase the risk of depression in seniors. Many doctors that treat the older seniors tend to concentrate on physical ailments and don’t always see the signs of depression that they might be suffering from like loneliness and feelings of hopelessness especially if they have lost their companion of decades.
Thank goodness the Baby Boomers are staying more active unlike our older seniors who were taught to keep it all inside, even despite the raging depression among the older seniors you will still see a majority that stay active and enjoy their lives up into their 70’s and 80’s and despite what health officials tell us we are living a lot longer these days and there is no reason that our elders should suffer depression because they feel isolated and alone.
We should all practise a few acts of random kindness toward our older generation. Make a point to say a few kind words to that old lady that has a house full of cats or that mean old grumpy man that never has any family or visitors around, you may be surprised at how much a little kindness could make such a big difference in another human life especially if they are elderly and feel isolated and alone.
Eric and his young family are living in a converted barn right now and he has so many plans pertaining to the 10 acres of land he purchased in Kentucky before he was diagnosed and I don’t think he is going to let his illness stop him. He plans to build a house where the trees are on this little hill so he can look down on his pond.
When I wasn’t at the hospital with Eric I spent my time meditating and listening to the bullfrogs, crickets, different kinds of birds like the one that says bob white, bob white or at least that’s what it sounds like it says and watching and feeding his ducks and watching the fish jump in and out of the water and it had a very calming effect on me.
One of the technicians that was administering his chemo was explaining to him that he had to watch being around children that are sick and bugs that can bite and cause easy infections and also warned against dog scratches and bites and immediately he thought he would have to get rid of his 7 month old Jack Russell, Chloe because she is very attached to him.
I decided to go to the pet store and look for boots for Chloe and the pictures below show her in her little boots. I don’t think they will work for very long because she’s very active and I had to go find them several times when she went outside, but I know they didn’t want to get rid of her permanently so hopefully they can train her to be careful around Eric and Ethan.
