Let love

Let love

(For us)

     By Cath Rathbone

Focus not

On what she’s lost

But love

What she has left.

Look not

At how her clothes

Are stained

But that she still can eat.

Step down

And look her in the eye

Connect with

What’s inside;

Less judging

Of what used to be

Will open

Up your heart.

Love’s patient, kind and healing,

Love softens and outlives;

Lean into Love, release your fear

Let Love acceptance be.

Accept her

Light is going out,

Accept she’s

Going back;

Accept that

She is different now

And ne’er

The same shall be.

Relax and

Put your stuff away;

Your rules,

Your phone, your life.

Sit quiet

And let her set the pace

Enjoy her

For her while.

Love’s patient, kind and healing,

Love softens and outlives;

Lean into Love, release your fear

Let Love acceptance be.

Love her

Who precious gift gave you,

The life

Which you now have;

Love her

Who loved you hour by hour,

None which

You can recall.

Love her

with all your heart and strength

Love for

The both of you;

Love her

With everything you have

She's waiting

In that place.

Lean into Love, release your fear

Lean into Love right now.

Lean in Love and cherish her

Let Love acceptance be.

You're Still Leaving

You're Still Leaving

I wasn’t ready as you began to leave, Mum,

When those awful bony fingers

Began plucking out your abilities,

Your memories, and your character

Taking them one by one by one.

As if to taunt me, they’d replace one

For a minute, or two, or ten…

But then the pickers would pluck them back

Again, without a care; and

Take them one by one by one.

I prayed I could cope with it daily;

Accepting the snatchers would snatch

Again, reaching into your sacred bank

Of treasured moments, and

Take them, one by one by one.

I read and searched like Dad had shown me.

Learning everything I could, so I might be

Prepared, Mum.  Prepared for what? For my

Inability to stop the thief stealing you?

As it took you one by one by one.

The crazy thing is you’re still leaving, Mum.

The grifter telling its sneaky story, selling its ugly lie

That you’re still here but the thief waits by your side to

Plunder, pillage, rob.  You regress as they grow bold,

Taking you, one by one by one.

Where do you go? To Heaven, I bet, Mum

Like a slow version of Star Trek’s

Beaming station – and at the other end, Dad

And Grampie and Mizzy are collecting them

As they arrive, one by one by one

I’m accepting and without expectation today,

After 11 months apart, your face though older’ll

Be the same – the you I knew, will not.

Alzheimer’s, that thief, has done its job

Taking you one by one by one.

I’ll hold your hands, I’ll rub your feet,

And hug you make you laugh – then hold

Your face in both my hands, til eyes

Locked tight, I reach the well of untouchable

Love, Mum, and refill it, one by one by one.

For in the end it’s all that’s left, all that

Matters and all that mattered.  Love. 

You can’t make it, you can’t fake it and

The swindler Alzheimer’s cannot shake it.

I’ll love you for us both, Mum. One by one by one.

By Cath Rathbone