Sometimes when I arrive she is disoriented and confused. I start by getting her up from bed, telling her about the weather, sharing a story of my children.  I get her to the bathroom to start her morning routine.

As we move through our routine she is sometimes concerned that she will be late for class.  You see thirty years ago she taught English at High School.  She was always prompt and expected the same from her students.  These days are hard, I talk to her about her retirement, how she now can enjoy the quiet life.  I remind her that she is 86 years old.

She is always a little shocked at her age.  She still feels like she is 21, despite the fact that she can no longer drive or go out alone. Always 21.

By this time we are getting into the shower.  As the warm water washes over her you can see a transformation starting.  She picks up her soap and carries through her routine, the same routine she did several times a day after swimming practice.  She was a Mermaid after all.  Synchronized swimming kept her agile and graceful for many years.

As we continue along I get out the shampoo and wash her hair.  As she tilts her head back into the water for a rinse the transformation is almost complete.  I won’t say for a minute that she remembers everything, but she is no longer disoriented, no longer confused.  It is like the water washing over her brings her back to today or almost today at the very least.

By the time we are finished and into fresh pyjamas we are chatting easily about her former students or my children and how they too love to swim.  Brushing out her hair she thanks me again and again for helping her with her shower so she could be ready for breakfast.

And every time I take her down to breakfast I am thankful for the warm water that washes over her and brings her back to us for another day.