Ten Thousand Joys & Ten Thousand Sorrows: A Couple's Journey Through Alzheimer's"Ten Thousand Sorrows & Ten Thousand Joys offers a vision of lives well-led, and of love in the thick of crisis and loss. Beyond inspiring."-Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence "This beautiful book is unlike any other personal account of living with Alzheimer's disease that I have ever read . . . it offers patients and families practical insights into how they can live their lives more fully amidst the heartbreak of a mind-robbing illness."- Paul Raia, Director of Patient Care and Family Support, Alzheimer's Association, Massachusetts Chapter "A story of courage, love, and growing wisdom in the face of Alzheimer's."-Joseph Goldstein, author of One Dharma, Founder / Director of Insight Meditation Society In this profound and courageous memoir, Olivia Ames Hoblitzelle describes how her husband's Alzheimer's diagnosis at the age of seventy-two challenged them to live the spiritual teachings they had embraced during the course of their life together. Following a midlife career shift, Harrison Hobliztelle, or Hob as he was called, a former professor of comparative literature at Barnard, Columbia, and Brandeis University, became a family therapist and was ordained a Dharmacharya (senior teacher) by Thich Nhat Hanh. Hob comes to life in these pages as an incredibly funny and brilliant man who never stopped enjoying a good philosophical conversation-even as his mind, quite literally, slipped away from him. And yet when they first heard the diagnosis, Olivia and Hob's initial reaction was to cling desperately to the life they had had. But everything had changed, and they knew that the only answer was to greet this last phase of Hob's life consciously and lovingly. Ten Thousand Joys & Ten Thousand Sorrows provides a wise and compassionate vision for maintaining hope and grace in the face of life's greatest challenges. (This memoir was originally self-published as The Majesty of Your Loving.) |
Contents
1 | |
7 | |
GONNA JUMP SHIP | 243 |
A GOOD DAY TO DIE | 265 |
Dance Me to the End of Love | 286 |
Clear Light Meditation | 299 |
Notes | 319 |
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Common terms and phrases
accept aging Alzheimer's asked aware became become began blessing body breath called caregiving challenges chapter clear close connection continued conversation death deep difficult disease dream dying early especially everything experience expression eyes face father fear feel felt finally friends gift gone hand handle happened hard heart Hob's hold inspiration it's journey keep knew later leave let go light living looked loss meaning meditation meeting mind moment moments morning moved nature never night patient paused peace person phrases possible practice present questions reached reality realized Reflections remember response seemed sense shared silence simple sitting situation someone sometimes speak stay story talk teacher teaching things thought tion took touch tradition trying turned walked watched wondered