Perhaps...

A daughters death a mothers Alzheimer's

Perhaps the mother the "lucky" one,
lucky now having no memory of the daughter
that she blessed us all with,
as her memories are erased,
her mind deleting
minute by minute
hour by hour
day by day
until each and everyone of us a stranger
as she descends into adult infancy,
barely living but alive,
alive though without the pain of a child now gone.
I ask myself what would be worse,
to live and remember
or to exist without heartbreak,
perhaps neither...

Author's Note

For those of you that have visited before Deb passed last August, of which I have written a couple of bits about. Since then her mother, Rose, has had a rapid decline into Alzheimer's,
having little or no memory of the 80+ years of a life lived to the full.

Reviews

[lightsong]

Actually Gee... You hit it deep inside us. and I can't answer, because each situation is different than the other. This is moving. a sad truth.

[Gee]

Thank you for dropping in, always appreciated :)
Hope you are well

[Temperance]

I feel the loss. Very same theme as my posting entitled Cherished Moments. It is difficult to watch the decline of vibrant personalities. It can also be difficult to write about it. Thanks for sharing your perspective on this terrible disease. Temp

[Temperance]

Oops, Cherished Memories, not Moments. :)

[Gee]

Thanks for dropping in Temp:)

[Pete]

there's just something unsettling about that word "perhaps" and your poem well captures that uneasy feeling. a case of pick your poison. well said ... :)

[Gee]

Thank you Pete, what a choice!

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

A powerful piece of poetry Gee that asks such a painfully true question of us all. It is such a pernicious disease that strips away the best parts of us. Slowly. It is a slow regression that in the end simply leaves behind a shell. I honestly can't imagine a worse way to go. Your poem moved me with its message.

[Gee]

Thanks Carlos. I was reflecting on the nearly 10 months passed since Debs' passing and my still are sadness that she no longer here. And then I got to thinking about her mother...

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Having gone through this similar situation with a parent suffering from dementia...
we lose them before they leave us in body...but the spirit always
remains the same...and those we lose forever stay in our hearts for eternity.
j.

[Gee]

Tis such a sad disease but one that has shielded Debs' mum from the pain of losing her daughter.
read moreTis such a sad disease but one that has shielded Debs' mum from the pain of losing her daughter.
Thank you, as always Jacob, for taking the time to both read and comment on my stuff :)
Hope you are keeping well.

[Chris Shaw]

I would say her mother has been spared the pain of your friend Deb's loss. For the loss of a child is incredibly painful. To live and remember in the declining years is living and meeting hell here on earth. The Alzheimers is tragic enough, her daughter's death a tragedy too many. Touching write Gee. Hope all is good.

Chris

[Gee]

Hi Christine, all good in MK :)
I am still struggling to come to terms with Debs' passing. read moreHi Christine, all good in MK :)
I am still struggling to come to terms with Debs' passing.
Hope all is well in Berks

[Chris Shaw]

Not easy losing a close friend. You take care. All good here. Enjoy the weekend.