The kind of woman she was.

It was a sad day when my dear wife Jeanne died almost 4 years ago. Of complications from Alzheimer's. And maybe I should bemoan the ravages and devastating effects of Alzheimer's. And how it ruined Jeanne's life. And my life, too. But Alzheimer's didn't really ruin my life. Because I didn't let it. I got on with life. Through my connections with Alzheimer's. Alzheimer's put me on a path that crossed with other Alzheimer care-givers. Including an Italian woman, caring for her elderly Alzheimer's stricken mother. We commiserated with each other. Got to know each other. By email. By telephone. By daily contact on Skype, an audio-video hook up. Eventually, I went to Italy. Met her in Venice. And we traveled extensively together over the past three years. In the Italian Alps, in Scotland, in Iceland, in Germany. Summer before last she was with me in Minnesota. This winter, I'll be living with her in Italy. It's a wonderful relationship. That came about because we both had the tragedy of Alzheimer's in our lives. Had it not been for Alzheimer's, we would never have met. Never heard of each other. Our lives would have gone off in far different directions. My guess is that if Jeanne and my girlfriend's mother are looking down on us from a perch in a spiritual paradise, they are happy for both of us. And it wouldn't surprise me if Jeanne was the one that set the wheels in motion for me finding another love and continuing happiness here on Mother Earth. That's the kind of woman she was. And maybe still is. --Jim Broede