Just So Stories

November 2024

• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1763661806
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1763661806
• RRP: $26.00

I had great pleasure in reviewing Lisa’s first book 80 Years Without Dementia last year, not only because she is one of our friends from Redcliffe SLS but also because her story touches so many lives.

This is particularly so for those of us who are older and have had the heartache of a loved parent with dementia, and watching their decline helplessly. Lisa’s first book gave real support for those in this position, and this second one relates her family’s story of giving her father a ‘good death’ which, in their case, meant bringing him home when the end was near, so that he could die with his family close around him.

Lisa is quick to point out that her books do not come from a medical stance, but rather, they are a family story of love, caring and concern, how she and her mother, in particular, coped with both diagnosis and putting her father into care and now in this one, how she and her siblings, mother, and her own family, husband and teens, decided that Bob deserved to die at home, where he would be happiest and surrounded by love.

Lisa takes readers through the practical arrangements needed and points out that it is not ‘doable’ for everyone, but for those who can, there is a way and there is support.

Again this is an extremely moving testament to a daughter’s love for her dad. I know that in the past holidays, Lisa and her family travelled back to Western Australia with her father’s ashes to return him to the place of his early life. I have no doubt that it would have been a pilgrimage filled with laughter and reminiscing, along with much joy and poignancy. I’m looking forward now to seeing Lisa at our upcoming club awards night to hear more about this special final journey.

Lisa’s books have been extremely well-received, and I think very likely, because they are not medical textbooks or how-to’s but personal and very real accounts of the day-to-day, the solving of problems, the support of family and friends and the invitation to others to explore options for preparing for late in life and end of life scenarios. I would thoroughly recommend these to you, should you be in a similar position, or if, like myself, you are making preparations for the ‘just in case’ situation that can happen to any of us.

I give this one a 5 ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ rating.