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13.6.19

VISITING MABEL - a story in a hundred words


VISITING MABEL

“You’ve got a visitor, Nan,” Sandra said brightly.
“That’s nice, dear. The kettle’s boiling, I’ll make tea.”
Aileen looked around. A cushion-filled armchair, an iron warming on the antique range, a chenille cloth hiding the table-legs. Sixty years out of date, certainly, but nothing to suggest the old lady was losing the plot.

Mabel put a cup by Aileen’s elbow and offered a tin of biscuits.
“Don’t take the Bourbons – I’m saving those for Gerald.”
She touched the sepia photograph that held pride of place on the mantelpiece.
“His letter from the front last week said he’d be home soon.”
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People have different ways of coping with grief - who's to say Mabel's way is wrong? Dementia also manifests itself in many different ways, and losing forty years is possibly one of the easiest for the sufferer.
Thanks to Rochelle -  https://rochellewisoff.com/ - for hosting Friday Fictioneers every week, even when she's off on a jaunt, and to Valerie J Barrett for the atmospheric photograph.

39 comments:

  1. So much meaning in a simple comment. Very moving.
    Ann

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  2. This is so touching. Mable lives in her own universe and so she should as long as she can. Great story.

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  3. Mabel is surrounded with those things that make her comfortable and at ease. My dad has parkinsons and dementia. It's hard for him to communicate, but when he does he likes to talk about the past. There are times we aren't sure if his remembrance is acurate or true even, but we just go along with him. My mom's mind is sharp so it's a beautiful thing when she simply agrees (and smiles). Lovely to watch. A beautiful story, Liz!

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    1. Thank you Brenda. My husband is going that way and it's not easy to bite my tongue!

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  4. Old age is cruel. No solution except be kind. I often wonder where these people go in their minds. Sometimes being off the planet seems not so bad and other times it just seems like nature is nasty.

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  5. Sad story.
    Unfortunately it's true for many...

    Three Musketeers - Anita

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    1. More and more, according to news reports.

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  6. Dear Liz,

    What a touching story. The last few lines are heartbreaking. Well done.

    Shalom,

    Rochelle

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  7. Poor Mabel, unable to move on. A tender scene.

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    1. Thanks Iain. Mabel is probably happy enough.

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  8. people around her may not realize it but she's in a good place considering.

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    1. You are right, plaridel, she doesn't need to learn the teuth.

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  9. Mabel and Gerald will be reunited soon enough, and I imagine she knows this. Good one, Liz.

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    1. She probably does, deep down. Thanks Sandra.

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  10. A poignant piece indeed. Rather that than feeling depressed.

    Rosey invited me to lunch!

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    1. The MAbel I know is always positive too, and her memory is shot!

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  11. That was a lovely one, Liz. There was a tenderness to it that was palpable.
    I always say dementia or Alzheimer's can be a blessing in disguise for the ones who have it.

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  12. She was content with her memory....sad but true for many. Well done!

    ~Donna
    https://authorshutterbug.wordpress.com/

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  13. So poignant and moving. You captured the essense of the photo perfectly.

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  14. A good story, Liz, and so well written. I hope no one tries to bring her up to date and breaks her heart again. My mother had Alzheimer's and forgot my father had died years before. I told her he was on a fishing trip. That satisfied her. ---- Suzanne

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    1. Sometimes the loss of memory can be a blessing.

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    1. I will try to write a cheerful story next week!

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  16. I remember my mother slowly losing it... not just in this way but also mixing in fantasies

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    1. With my father, Bjorn, it was painful to watch a proud man lose himself.

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  17. This is touching and true-to-life. The only kind thing to do is to allow Mabel to enjoy her own world. Trying to convince her the her beloved Gerald is dead and gone will not help her, but only make her worse. If her behavior is caused by dementia, there is nothing else to do but to allow her to enjoy her own reality.

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    1. You are right, Linda, but until they reach that stage they arre very frustrated, in my experience.

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