Parallel Journeys
A Mother and Daughter's Struggle through Alzheimer's Disease
by Wanda Burse

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During the years of progressive struggle and decline, Wanda kept journals of her experience as a means of coping with the frustration and heartache. These documents served as the raw material for Parallel Journeys, a memoir that is not only about Alzheimer’s and its victims, but the experiences of the family, as well, who must watch and care for a loved one as they fade away. From the first symptoms to the inevitable end, Wanda offers her story in a series of personal vignettes, bravely revealing how Alzheimer’s devastates the individuals it touches. To those readers who have endured the disease in their family, these moments will be all-too-familiar. However, in sharing her private experiences and deepest feelings, Wanda shows us how it is possible to go through the darkness and survive. Mixed in with the pain and sadness are glimmering gems of insight that teach us how to cope and maintain faith in the midst of suffering and doubt. There are stories with Wanda and her mother that will make you laugh, as well as those that will make you cry; joy and suffering are both parts of life, as Wanda beautifully and painfully explores. Tender, emotional, and courageous, Parallel Journeys serves an invaluable resource for anyone connected to the tragedies of Alzheimer’s and dementia.

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“Although Mom physically had but one death, I believe she had actually died twice,” writes Wanda Burse in this harrowing account of her mother’s journey through Alzheimer’s disease.

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Wanda Burse began her career path as a primary school teacher with the Lambton-Kent District School Board in Ontario, where she worked for thirty years. She now serves as an Ordained Minister in the four-point Rural United Pastoral Charge in the same region, and also as a chaplain at the Blenheim Community Village Long-Term Care facility. Both career paths encouraged an enduring love for reading and writing. Inspired by the beauty of nature, she published a book of poems, titled On Hallowed Ground, in 2013. Parallel Journeys is the brave product of professional and personal experiences, encompassing both her work as a chaplain with the elderly, as well as the role of caregiver she took with her ailing mother. Wanda currently lives in Blenheim with her husband, Don. Together, they have two sons and four beautiful grandchildren.

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Contributors

Author

Wanda Burse

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