Thanks to Alzheimer’s Reading Room for sharing the following poem by Max Wallack whose great-grandmother suffered with Alzheimer’s. Max went on to found the non-profit, Puzzles to Remember, providing puzzles to care facilities with dementia and Alzheimer’s patients. (Links are at the end of this post)
Turning true-blue loyal friends into treacherous strangers…..
It gallops in silently on powerful hoofs
Snatching sweet, precious, forgotten memories
Turning true-blue loyal friends into treacherous strangers
Clogging synapses with emptiness
Crumbling trust into excruciating paranoiaWith bleak darkness comes the anxious wakefulness of broad daylight
And bitter terror encompasses every living fiber
“If I sleep, where will I be when I wake up?”
The compulsion to run, the paralysis of fearMature, child-like dependence
Retracing youthful development, but in rapid reverse
Cureless medicines, meaningless conversations
Leading up to the inevitable
Max Wallack is a student at Boston University Academy. His great grandmother, Gertrude Finkelstein, suffered from Alzheimer’s disease. Max is the founder of PUZZLES TO REMEMBER , a 501(c.)3 charitable organization. PUZZLES TO REMEMBER is a project that provides puzzles to nursing homes and other institutions that care for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients.
Thanks to Alzheimer’s Reading Room for allowing us to share the poem.
