By: Kirsten Wreggitt, Chief Puzzle Constructor at Puzzles for Good

My Grandma made me pancakes in the shape of anything I could imagine – giraffes, Mickey Mouse, unicorns, and of course full moons. Those childhood breakfasts are cherished memories of family gathered together with Grandma at the center in her frilly apron. I remember that she laughed easily, always had a lap for you to sit in, and that she loved frogs. Of course, Kermit the Frog was her favourite, but I remember he was among many friends in the room I slept in at her house. That bedroom was filled with frog figurines on shelves covering each wall. There was no doubt that she was a fun loving person; a pretty perfect Grandma and a wonderful wife and mother too.

That is how I want to remember her, spatula in hand laughing with us at breakfast. Unfortunately, we also had to witness a slow and painful decline until we lost her to Alzheimer’s. At first she simply misplaced things or forgot a meeting, but over time it progressed to forgetting people, forgetting how to care for herself, and finally forgetting who she was. Such a terrible loss.

Many of us joke about forgetfulness and old age. I wish Alzheimer’s stopped with a little forgetfulness. The final stages of Alzheimer’s are no joke and it would be a wonderful thing if no other families had to witness or experience this loss of a loved one.

I am the owner of Puzzles for Good. It’s a social enterprise that creates word puzzles and shares the proceeds with organizations doing great work in the world.

I hold the memory of my Grandma dear to my heart and so I picked the Alzheimer Society of Canada as the recipient for this month’s puzzle pack.

Puzzles are great for brain health and are also so much fun! Get your Memory Puzzle Pack here.