It is amazing how impactful the words “I Love You” are. It’s been quite some time since I’ve heard that from my mom. She has progressed so much in her disease that I really cannot remember when the last time was that she truly recognized me.
I go there several times a week, to check up on her and dad, and am very satisfied when she is ok, and I get a smile. I try hard to make her laugh saying things that I know in the past would do so, such as asking her if I was her favorite, or “I have a question to ask you” to which I normally get the response from her “Oh boy, here he goes again”.
Most recently I asked her “What’s a matter for you” to see what she would say and she looked at me and corrected me by saying “no se dice For you, se dice With You” which made me bust out laughing cause I got a response. Lately though, I don’t get anything. Just a blank stare wondering who I am.
For father’s day, we were having everybody get together at Dad’s house. I walked in to his house and dad was outside with my sister. Mom was inside just walking around in the kitchen, looking for everybody I guess. I asked her to come over to me and I grabbed her arms and told her “I Love You mom”. She looked at me and said – “Yes but my husband is outside”. In other words – Thank you but I’m taken already! Another memory created.
Yesterday, June 28th, I went over there with Luisa and when I walked in dad was sitting in his chair, as usual watching a baseball game and mom was lying on her bed. She heard the noise of the door chime and sat up on her bed. I walked in and calmly said hi. I asked her if she wanted to get up and she did not really answer me so I asked her to lay back down to relax that it was just us. I told her that I would be in the next room with dad and she can just stay there. She had trouble just trying to lay back down so I helped her by picking up her feet to lay them back on the bed. She struggled with this and thought that she was going to fall. She got comfortable and I came close to her face and grabbed her face and said “I Love you so much mom”, to which she immediately responded “I love you too baby.” Tears immediately started running down my eyes. I kissed her forehead and walked away letting her lay there.
I smiled and walked into the living room and sat down. We were there for a few minutes when she popped out of the bedroom and looked at all of us there.
We all said hi and asked her to join us. As she was walking around dad to get to the sofa, Luisa said – “Look Angela, here is your son” to which she immediately responded, “Oh my God, Really?”.
Easy Come, Easy Go. Today was a great day. I now had two memories for that day.
