Vegas Part 1- A sister tribute

Five of the six sisters met in Las Vegas last weekend.  At the end of 2011, my baby sister, Theresa, suggested we all get together in2012; unfortunately she couldn’t make it.  This is part one of three blogs that cover our trip from May 5^th – May 8^th.  Our oldest sister Mary is the subject of the first blog.  She is 60, blind, and developmentally challenged.  My sister Marty flew from Bethesda to Houston to pick her up and fly to Las Vegas.  While in Vegas I have never witnessed such kindness as I did from my other three sisters in making Mary feel completely comfortable with her new surroundings.  It started with Susie giving Mary the tour of her home so if Mary was by herself she would know exactly how to get to her room, the kitchen, etc. You only have to show her once and it is embedded in her memory.   The first night we went to our niece’s house for dinner and she was immediately given a similar tour in yet another new surrounding.  All I can say is she is a quick study.  The first full day in Las Vegas we did a casino tour that entailed walking four miles to get from one part of the strip to our dinner destination.  Along the way we stopped and gambled twice Mary brought her own hard-earned money to bet the slot machines.  We would set her up in a chair where she could easily access the slot to input the money. The machine’s money slot was neon blue and fairly easy for her to see.  At first we had to tell her exactly when to either push the button to spin the wheel or crank the lever.  (The machines had both options).  After about 20 minutes, Mary was no longer waiting for us to tell her when to bet. At Harrah’s Casino she sat down, input down one dollar, placed a bet, and won $33 in about a minute. At the airport going home, she played the slots and was up to $80. I can’t help wondering if we didn’t have to catch our flight home, if she would still be winning at that machine. By the way, of the five of us, Mary is the only one who won anything.   

My major observation was experiencing such pride in my sisters and the care and tenderness they showed over the weekend taking care of Mary. It was like they became her eyes.  The second revelation was just observing Mary’s independence and there is no limit to what she can learn and do.  Related this to my own experience after a stroke--I also have no limits.