My dad’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis wasn’t a surprise, as we had seen the signs for a long time. My mom had been slowly readjusting their lives to fit his needs, and, of course, as the disease progressed, so did the pace of the adjusting.

My daughter has watched all these changes, in both my parents, and has used her music to work through it. Today, she put out her first single: Grandpa’s Song.

It’s about my mom, telling my dad about how she will always be there for him. It’s about remembering their past, with a tentative eye on the future. It’s about how this wretched disease has stolen so very much from them.

Singer Girl, whose true name is Frankie Torres, has been honing her craft for more than 12 years. From singing in clubs, on stages, in bars and in huge arenas, she has waited patiently for the day she can share her OWN music with the world. Today she started seeing that dream become a reality.

Grandpa’s Song is the first of three original songs she will release this year. They are all three incredibly personal, and reference her experiences in some way. This song hits the closest to home for me, of course, because it is about my dad and mom. But the other two touch me in a completely different way. When I hear them, I can’t see the little girl who idolized Kelly Clarkson and wanted to be her one day. Now I see the woman who she has become, one who is a star in her own right.

Two weeks ago we thought we were losing my dad. Alzheimer’s patients often lose the ability to swallow, aspirate, and get pneumonia. That’s what ultimately kills many of them, and dad was struggling. He aspirated. He got sick.

My brother and his wife flew out from Washington — just in case. We all had special moments with him. I played him the song.

Dad hasn’t spoken much in years. But when he heard the song — HIS song — he hummed along. The rest of us wept.

Please take a listen on whichever streaming platform you prefer I’ll list a few links below. If you like what you hear, say so! Like/share/download/follow her on them, and on her Facebook page and on Instagram at frankie_torres3.

Thanks for listening. Hug your parents, your grandparents, and your kids. They all deserve a song.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/7h6eW2mDInB03whHhgnM0i

iTunes: Grandpa’s Song – Single

youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2Yj3maF6pc&fbclid=IwAR3VeHwzPRppFpD320tQMrXp13Nb0cBIoBKNoGAqF1oUB2WZXZLlvVD-G6k