Twelve-year-old Bhakti, and four-year-old Aarush, have gone to see the Diwali fireworks with their parents in Chandigarh India, where they live. A Muslim man fired shots in the sky to intimidate the Hindus at the festival. No one was aware that a bullet was on its way down and would hit the top of Aarush’s little head. It killed him instantly.
What would happen if Aarush reincarnated into a Muslim family, and the man who shot the bullet was now his father? What if that child remembered his Hindu mother and found her again? This is the story of two families and their struggle with loss, forgiveness, acceptance, healing and love, and the son who leads them through it. |
Why this story?I love writing. In fiction I love the way characters tell you what they want to say and do. In writing a memoir, however, you write what happened to you. You relive the scenes vividly, harshly, sadly, or lovingly, as they were. In the writing and reliving of this story, there was a perspective that made me wish I could have been kinder, more understanding, and more loving. Writing it was a painful process. I did it to offer my experience to you, in hopes that on your journey you'll know that you are doing the best you can, just as I did.
This is a story about my mother who developed dementia, and me, who became her caregiver. I am not an authority on dementia, but sharing my experience may help in ways that statistics and studies can't.
Sometimes you just need someone who understands what you are going through because caring for a loved one is stressful and all-consuming. |
My mother, Helen, and me.
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Mother's 88th birthday party with her
cigarette made from a drinking straw. |
Help
Alz.org is an amazing site for in-depth information on Alzheimer's and other dementias.
Google hospice for kind of care offered in your area. They do more than just end of life needs.
Facing The Final Mystery by Laura Larsen
Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande
Google hospice for kind of care offered in your area. They do more than just end of life needs.
Facing The Final Mystery by Laura Larsen
Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande