Drowning On Dry Land (Decent Into Alzheimer's)

 
She slips into the thickening fog
catching fleeting glimpses
of the clearer view behind
as the path ahead leads her
unforgivingly onward into the haze.

On the brink, she stands motionless,
searching for something familiar,
trying to maintain a dignity that
once she did not need to work at,
and mask a fear she cannot remember.

Her once unwavering step, now hesitant,
no longer self assured and aware,
instead, guided by a gentle hand
placed protectively upon her back,
or a kindly uttered word of re-direction.

Eyes once sparked with knowledge
now stare uncertain from above a painted smile,
for, once the confident care giver, 
life has played a cruel, unmerciful game,
and turned her full circle in mid-step.

september 2002

Included in

Awarded by The Creative Writer's Lounge
2nd Place ~ Creative Writing Contest Feb/March 2003