The other day before leaving for dinner Kate said, “Let me go to the bathroom first. It’s better to be prepared.” I immediately thought about the Boy Scout motto, “Always Be Prepared.” I was never a scout, but I remember that motto. That led me to think about its application to caregiving. (Yes, I relate almost everything to caregiving.)There is little question that those of us playing this role and those for whom we care benefit from being prepared. Of course, one of the things we learn is that there is no way prevent everything. I was reminded of that yesterday morning.
Several weeks ago, Kate fell out of the shower in one of the guest baths. Since then, I have tried to encourage her to use our bathroom. It seemed to me that it would be safer since it has a walk-in shower. Knowing that Kate uses multiple towels after showering and that she grabs whatever she can find, I hang two bath towels on a hook in our shower for Kate each morning. I keep a third towel on the counter directly across from the shower and place a bath mat on the floor beside the shower door. I also put out her clothes and place them on the chair on her side of the bed. I thought that would make it easy to find them because that is where she used to put them. That’s my effort to be prepared.
Sometimes that works quite well. Sometimes it doesn’t. Yesterday was a good example of the latter. I was in the kitchen around 7:45 when I heard a sound from the back of the house. I got up to check and noticed that Kate was in the bathroom next to our bedroom. I heard water running and assumed that she must have been taking a shower. I thought my preparations had been in vane. I went back to the kitchen. Fifteen minutes later, I heard another sound. This time I found Kate standing in the doorway to the family room. I asked if I could help her. She said she would. I asked if she had seen the clothes I put out for her. She didn’t remember. We walked to our bedroom where I saw the top I picked out. It was still on the chair. I located the others on the floor in a guest bathroom along with another pair of pants, top, underwear, bra, and two pair of shoes. I walked to another bathroom and found an additional pair of pants and bra.
Kate was obviously confused. Her memory doesn’t allow her to remember where she puts anything. I tried to envision what must have been going through her mind. It was clear that she had been in her closet and picked out additional clothes. My guess is that she had forgotten she had more than enough to wear in one bath and went back to her closet to pick out another pair of pants but took them into a different bathroom.
At any rate, I got her clothes together and helped her place them in our bathroom where she wanted them. I never quite understand this because she never dresses in the bathroom. She always brings the clothes to our bedroom after her shower. I left her to shower and returned to the bedroom about ten minutes later. She was drying herself off.
At 9:45, I checked on her again. She was resting in bed. I asked if I could help her. She said, “You could get me some clothes.” I told her they were right beside the bed. She asked for underwear. They had been with the rest of her clothes, but I couldn’t find them. I just got another pair from her drawer. I do wonder where the others went.
Before writing this post, I went to Google for more information about the Boy Scout motto. I thought being prepared meant “preventing” problems. According to Boy Scout Trail it means that one is “always ready to do what is necessary to help others. It also means you are ready, willing, and able to do what is necessary in any situation that comes along.” I like that. It’s a great message for all of us who are caregivers, especially at those times when we are most frustrated. I try to follow it. As I write this, I can’t help thinking of Kate. When she pays me a compliment, I often say, “Well, I try . . .” She stops me and says, “You don’t try. You do . .” I’d like to think that’s what she would say if I told her, “I try to follow that motto.”
