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JenniferMaxwell
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0 posted 2008-03-17 03:57 AM


I wheeled her to a quiet corner in the day room
near the racks of magazines and books
her mind could no longer comprehend. She handed
me an Easter card with butterfly stickers
lovingly applied in occupational therapy by her
shaky hands and asked me to mail it to her sister
who died 18 years ago. I promised I would and she
thanked me saying as soon as she found her purse
she’d pay me back for the 2 cent stamp.
She blushed and confided Elwin had finally proposed,
and asked if I thought she should accept. I asked
if she knew him well enough to be sure
he was the man she wanted to spend
the rest of her life with. She answered that
though she’d just remembered him
and started seeing him again in her dreams,
she’d known him since the 7th grade  
and 75 years was surely long enough.


© Copyright 2008 JenniferMaxwell - All Rights Reserved
effjayel
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since 2007-09-30
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At the Crossroads of Infinity
1 posted 2008-03-17 12:53 PM


Jennifer, I can relate to this having spent a lot of time visiting my Gran in a care home. She also became very confused & forgetful towards the end. Hope I don't end up like that
JenniferMaxwell
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2 posted 2008-03-17 01:36 PM


Thanks very much for commenting, effjayel. It’s so very painful to watch someone you care about fading away. But in a sense, at least in this case, it helps to know that, if only in her mind, she has family and friends who’ve gone before her to guide and support her on her journey to the other side. Being with her during this transition is one of the most painful but also most beautiful experiences of my life.



effjayel
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since 2007-09-30
Posts 1474
At the Crossroads of Infinity
3 posted 2008-03-17 02:17 PM


Very true. I do take some comfort from the fact that as she was living in the 'past' as it were, they were at least happier(I hope) times for her & also that possibly because she were not totally aware of the here & now that she may have been blissfully unaware of the reality of the situation. It coes to us all I guess, and, whether she knew I was there or not, I pray she knew just how much she was loved at the end    John
JenniferMaxwell
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4 posted 2008-03-17 02:31 PM


She may not have known who you were, John, but I'm sure she felt your presence and your love.
Edder
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since 2003-04-02
Posts 671

5 posted 2008-03-17 05:09 PM


This is a very powerful piece that speaks volumes to me. She is lucky to have you.
Seeker72
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since 2007-02-24
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Oregon USA
6 posted 2008-03-19 12:21 PM


A quality piece.

Thank you so much for sharing.

ayearofdust
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since 2008-03-31
Posts 11

7 posted 2008-03-31 08:25 PM


This provoked many emotions. It's sad, and warm, and a little frightening. I'm glad to have read it.
Reborn
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since 2008-04-01
Posts 13

8 posted 2008-04-03 09:35 AM


Goes to show you how deep of an impact love and acts of love can have on someone. You never know how much you can mean to someone. Even though her memory was greatly reduced and she was very old, his love for her then still made her happy now. Maybe her mind chose to keep all of the most important memories.  
Sunshine
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Listening to every heart
9 posted 2008-04-03 12:28 PM


Jennifer, your heart is showing in this post. My mother-in-law recently passed away at the age of 99, and four months in a nursing home. We were among "the strange ones" because we visited at least every other day if not more often, and on the days we couldn't make it, we called her. We got to know a number of the other residents fairly well in that short time. Up until two days before she went on her own journey, mother's memory was excellent, and she was still holding her own with the hospice care staff who came to help us through the transition because mother had fallen [by trying to get up without a nurse present] and broke her hip. She didn't complain of any pain for four days...and with CHF, she was trying to push her way, I think, through the pearly gates. Once Hospice was on the scene, though, I think she felt she could "finally let go" and that her only son would be in good hands for comfort.

She was an amazing woman, and your poem is touchingly realistic.




Seoulair
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since 2008-03-27
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Seoul S.Korea
10 posted 2008-04-03 02:04 PM


Very touching...didn't finish reading...not able to.

It is nice and important that we keep good happy memories, in case we are out of reality one day. Deep sigh!!!!

Thank you for this wonderful poem.

Falling rain
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11 posted 2008-04-03 06:16 PM


this is really heart felt and touching. im deffenently saveing this to my library!!!

XxZachXx

"What did you think I ment?"

haha yes im sort of crazy deep down inside. lol!!



JenniferMaxwell
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12 posted 2008-04-03 08:40 PM


Thanks all for the very kind comments.
Larrysmom
Senior Member
since 2008-04-03
Posts 533
Florida, USA
13 posted 2008-04-03 11:11 PM


Wow Jennifer, this is a beautiful piece. It makes me sad in a way yet happy at the same time. Sad that the woman has come to this point in her life where she forgets, lives in the past, and has lost some independence, yet happy that she has such a loving caretaker...

Thank you for sharing this work.

Tammy<333

JamesMichael
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since 1999-11-16
Posts 33336
Kapolei, Hawaii, USA
14 posted 2008-04-04 05:17 PM


Jennifer you wrote this in a compassionate and gentle way...this woman is blessed to have you there during her transition...
my Mom passed away a few years ago at 79 and I remember how much it affected her when her younger sister passed away, as they had spent special times together in their senior years...James

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