My mum will be 101 in October and has been fit and active up until very recently. She walked most days, and although naturally her memory was becoming weaker, she was still doing cryptic crosswords and other puzzles to keep her brain active.
Just over the last few months there has been a great change in her, and she now gets very muddled over who is one of her children, what any of our names are etc. She has forgotten medication, so now she is needing more help, so I go over most mornings.
I do NOT consider her a burden (even though she thinks she is)! I feel privileged to sit with her and listen, to look at photos with her, and ask questions about her life. There are difficulties though as she does not want to feel incapable of some of the things that she needs help with, like showering, and I hate upsetting her.
She has a wonderful bone structure, thick white hair and is beautiful in my opinion.
I know that I will die well before the age of 100, as I have Type 1 diabetes and other illnesses, which fortunately my mum didn't have.