listen to the sound of my shaky heart

Yesterday was a good day. Today is a bad day. This morning I found Mama Eula throwing all of my grandfather’s things away. She’s furious because he’s taken her money and run off with another woman. When I try to explain that he’s coming back soon, Mama Eula’s eyes widen and she usually says, “When he does, I’ll kill him.” But sometimes it’s worse. Sometimes she says, “Well, I’ll just go down,” and then she motions to the lake, “and drown myself over there.” She then presses her lips together, and if I don’t respond, she adds for emphasis, “Then you’ll …

summer plans: love, love, love

For the past 10 years, I have volunteered in the US and abroad, but this summer I have made no such plans. Instead, I am embarking on a different journey: an adventure with my grandmother, Mama Eula. Six years ago, my Mama Eula started forgetting things—how many eggs she put in the cake batter, where she had placed her keys, people’s names. The doctors diagnosed her with Alzheimer’s. At first, the disease wasn’t noticeable, but every winter and summer when we visit as a family, the disease has progressed and she is still the same person, but different. Two years …