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India Currents gave me a voice in days I was very lost. Having my articles selected for publishing was very validating – Shailaja Dixit, Executive Director, Narika, Fremont
Taking care of a patient suffering from dementia requires tremendous patience and resilience. It’s heartbreaking when a loved one does not recognize their own offspring, sibling, parent, or spouse. The caregiver becomes whoever the patient thinks they are.
As someone has rightly said, “Caregivers go through more than they will ever tell you. They give up a lot, rarely have a social life, and get emotionally worn out. It’s a lot for one person, and you will never know until you have walked the road of a caregiver.”
My 78-year-old mom is an only child. She is also the sole caregiver to my 97-year-old grandmother who suffers from dementia. I wrote this poem for my mom, and for all the caregivers to say: you are not alone.
FORGOTTEN
Tapping her shoulder gently, she gestures it is bath time.
Her mother looks at her shaking her head saying
“It’s evening now, my bath was done in the morning,” and starts to fuss.
But she tenderly convinces her and gets her to agree.
As she patiently wraps the saree around her, pleating it,
gathering the loose end over her shoulder,
they talk like old times as any mother and daughter would,
when out of the blue her mother says-
“You are so kind. Who are you, and what is your name?”
~© Anita R Mohan
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