An aspiring journalist, advocate for justice and Justice Kirby fanatic is working towards graduation, a real job, and all her big ideas. So really, this is a place for practising those ideas. For practising real life. For penning my youth. All that.
It was early one weekday morning. We had work, we had study to do, the water was freezing and it was forecast to rain, so we decided to go to the beach. It is a place that I don't just like. It means more to me than that.
I live it, I breathe it. I can't live without it. I basically came out of my mothers womb and strait into the ocean. It doesn't matter what kind of water craft I am on. It doesn't matter what kind of waves are happening, if any. What matters, is that I can go to the beach and be surrounded by nothing but water, sun and sand.
It is so raw, and the ocean holds so much more power than most people can ever comprehend. It can kill you in a second, or it can provide endless hours of entertainment. It's the worlds biggest playground and on this morning, it was all ours.
Here is the latest of my Journalism projects. An audio slideshow based on the confronting nature of dementia.
Dementia is an extremely confronting disease. When you are talking to someone with advanced dementia, you never know whether there is truth to the conversation or not. Often, no matter how many times you have met them, they will not remember you. Eventually, people deteriorate to a point where they can do nothing but lie there. They can't talk, walk, or control their mind and body. They often end up in high dependency dementia wards, with no family nearby and no one to support them.
Future geriatrician, Ben, recognized this issue within the community and started a group that goes by the name "Adventures with Dementia." It is a group of 20 something year old university students who travel around once a week to these high dependency wards to have tea and scones with those who are able, and hold the hands of those who are not. It is a way for the youth to engage with the elderly community, so that they feel appreciated and loved. Ben takes us through the some of confrontation, shock and also the appreciation that comes with getting involved with the disease, and the people behind it.
