I wrote about this subject earlier, but hey, it's just so good, why not write some more? My care of Dad was never just a one-way relationship. The Lord aided my Dad to help and encourage me too. I have written about some of these little gems, like a timely smile from Dad, a breakthrough that produced cooperation in some simple way, a pat on my knee, hand, or arm, but the best of all was tucking him in bed at night.
Our night-time routine was fairly consistent over the last 18 months. I would suggest "let's go to bed", and Dad would make a move to his bedroom. I helped him with his clothes, took care of any personal needs, and pulled the blankets up over him once he settled in his favorite "go-to-sleep" position. I kissed him on the forehead, cheek, or both, and then said "I love you, Daddy. I pray your sleep will be sweet." And it's Dad's response that cheered my heart, and that's what I want to highlight now. Dad had trouble speaking for over a year. If asked a simple, direct question, he could say "yes", "no", "ok", or "alright". Occasionally, he said 2 or 3 coherent words. Complete sentences were long gone. When he tried to speak on his own initiative from his own thoughts, the words were mangled or like gibberish. But here's the sweet thing about Dad's encouragements at bedtime, whenever I kissed his cheek and said "I love you", he always nodded his head affirmatively and said "I love you too." The Lord almost always freed his voice to give love in this way. I am blessed!!
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