My father is slipping into to dementia. My mother is riddled with arthritis. They are terribly vulnerable and I am their primary caregiver. My husband’s parents are aging too. It is fair to say that this is turning our lives upside down.

For me, writing is sometimes my salvation. So, today I am starting a page simply called Dementia – partly because sometimes I feel like I am the one with dementia. I hope it will help others who are in this place. Perhaps, eventually it will become a collection.

The Phone

He has lost his phone
He is afraid to tell me
He tells my sister though

I meet his eye
“Daddy, have you lost your phone?”
“I have.”

Beautiful blue eyes fill with tears
And so do mine.

“It happens to the best of us,”
I manage to say

And he is the best of us.

JEHW
November 20, 2014