Having spent some time recently with an elderly relative at a memory care facility, I was newly moved by Jeanette Hardage’s description of a family member’s thoughts in this difficult situation. Her poem below, which was included in the Faith and Other Matters anthology, expresses both heartache and hope as she stands by a dementia patient. She juxtaposed it with biblical quotes from 2 Corinthians chapters 1 and 5, which instruct Christians that God comforts those in trouble and prepares an eternal home in heaven for us.
Alzheimer’s
She does a fetal curl
around fading memories,
hugs them tight
for one more night—
please, Lord,
give her one more night.One more night
before they sink
into the sea of nothingness
her mind
is becoming,
until the final gasp releases her to You.