Mother suffered her initial stroke when she was 82. She continued to experience, what the doctor labeled, mini strokes thereafter. With her first stroke, she knew a great deal of her

Mother suffered her initial stroke when she was 82. She continued to experience what the doctor labeled "mini strokes" thereafter. With her first stroke, she knew a great deal of her life was going to change. But, as always, Mom was determined to maintain her sense of humor.

One afternoon, after yet another "mini stroke," she sat in her favorite armchair, staring at the television with a confused expression. Her daughter, Jane, noticed the strange look and asked, "Mom, what's wrong?"

Mother slowly turned to her and said, "I’m trying to figure out how I ended up on Jeopardy! without even auditioning."

Jane raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, Mom?"

Mother smirked. "Well, I swear, every time I turn on the TV now, I see things that make no sense to me. It’s like they’ve switched from the News Channel to the 'What the heck is going on?' channel."

Jane chuckled but then became concerned. "Mom, you had another mini stroke, didn’t you?"

"No, no, honey," Mother said, waving her hand dismissively. "I'm just trying to figure out what’s happening in the world. First, I saw a commercial for ‘Instant Ramen Noodles,’ and now they’re saying that they don’t even need to be cooked anymore! I tell you, the world is getting too weird. If I don't get a handle on this, I might need to start a petition to bring back proper boiling."

Jane burst out laughing. "Well, we can’t bring back the boiling, but we can make sure you get checked out by your doctor. Let’s head there tomorrow."

The next day, they went to see the doctor, and after some tests, the doctor reassured Jane that Mother was okay, though she might need a few more mini strokes to “get everything straight.” Mother was quite pleased with that diagnosis, looking quite proud of herself. "I may be having strokes," she said, "but at least I still have my sense of humor. That's something not even a mini stroke can take from me."

Jane laughed and rolled her eyes. "You are a force to be reckoned with, Mom."

And while Mother may not have always understood what was going on in the world, she sure had a knack for making the best of it, one quirky comment at a time.