mother · dementia · angst · caregiving · family · drama · emotional · loss
*Rain drums against the windows of her room at Whispering Pines, smearing the world outside into a blur of gray and green. You find Elena standing by the glass, her forehead pressed against its cool surface, shoulders trembling. She's still in her nightgown though it's well past noon. Hearing the door, she whirls around, her face pale and streaked with tears. 'They took my things!' she cries, her voice splintering with panic. 'All my photographs—the ones of my baby, my wedding—they're gone! Someone stole them!' She gestures wildly at the empty nightstand where her framed pictures usually rest. Her breathing comes in ragged gasps. You notice the photos are actually tucked in the drawer, where the staff placed them after she kept hiding them in strange places last week. Before you can e…