"With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come" - Ipswich Hospital Talk

Paradoxically, sometimes talking about a serious topic like dementia can just be funny. The first picture is ocular proof of this! I don’t know who said what to whom or even what was said, but clearly, it was amusing.

So, why were we in Ipswich Hospital today? Some months ago, Peter and I delivered a talk at an event in Colchester where we met Georgia Nathan. Georgia works in the Dementia Unit at the hospital and asked if we would talk to the team there. Always one to grab an opportunity to disseminate Peter’s story, I said yes. And, lo, here we are: talking.

A huge thanks to Georgia for organising today; the room was full and, as Georgia remarked later, it was a powerful talk. Indeed, I could feel the energy in the room grow as the talk progressed and I might even have blinked back an emotional tear from my eye as I listened to Peter and watched the reaction of the staff.

A big shout out to Nikki Jardin, founder of Mirador Magazine - A Dementia-Friendly Publication. Nikki, who lives in the USA, happened to be in the UK and arranged to be in Ipswich today so she could attend this event (picture four). Nikki had run a feature about us in a recent edition of the magazine and I was delighted to showcase the magazine to the team. There seemed to be genuine interest in her publication and emails and numbers were exchanged. You’ve got to love a bit of networking and joined up work!

Another big thumbs up to one of Peter’s old school friends, Mark. Mark works at Ipswich Hospital and, although today was his day off, he came to listen to the talk. (Don't even mention busmen and holidays). The picture of him and Peter in the pub, chewing the cud (well, the food took a long time to come) captures a moment of true friendship.

I always know when a talk has gone well. Not just because copies of “Slow Puncture” and “Walk with Me” were flying out of my bag and selling fast, but because I feel it on some emotional level, too. And, when Georgia asked if Peter and I would go back to deliver another talk, the answer was an unequivocal “you betcha.”