“The tears spill as I pull out of the intersection. I leave him to it, his own personal grieving process. He doesn't need me telling him everything will be okay when we both know it won't. Instead I give his hand a firm squeeze. My role is clear to me now. I will be the strong one. I'll be good at this. I am aware of my limitations. I'm not warm, I'm not especially kind. But I can be strong. I can allow Tom to slip away knowing I will be all right. This, I can give him.” LoveGriefMarriageStrengthGrievingGrief And Loss Book:The Mother-in-Law Source: The Mother-in-Law
“Being Tully’s sister required a very specific skill set. You had to be an animated conversationalist (Tully was easily bored) but also a calming influence. You had to be fully invested in whatever she was talking about but be prepared for the fact that Tully would lose interest five minutes later. You had to love her with your whole heart but do so from arm’s length. Getting close to her was like trying to get close to a helicopter—you always ended up windswept and breathless…and occasionally you lost your head.” LoveFamilySistersFamily Relationships Book:The Younger Wife Source: The Younger Wife
“Today had involved far too much talking. Norah appreciated the great wonder of communication as much as the next person, but she despised it in excess.” SilenceTalkingCommunicationQuiet Book:Darling Girls Source: Darling Girls
“By the time I get out of the shower, Tom is in bed. At first I think he is asleep, but as soon as I crawl in beside him, his eyes open. “How are you going to live without me?” he says. We both chuckle, even as a tear slides from the corner of Tom’s eye. “I won’t,” I say, and then he reaches for me and we don’t talk anymore” LoveDeathFamilyMothers Book:The Mother-in-Law Source: The Mother-in-Law
“She didn’t do well out of her routine.” RoutineCreature Of Habit Book:Darling Girls Source: Darling Girls
“Dementia isn’t the only place that memories are found to be flawed—people find out they can’t rely on their memories every day. People blindsided in relationships. People who find out their truth is a lie. People pulled from trauma. People awakened, as in Anna and Eve. I wondered: If you can’t use memories to steer your life, what can you use? I didn’t know. It was why I had to write this book.” WritingMemoryWriting InspirationAlzheimers Author:Sally Hepworth
“I like it when people remember that I'm a person, not just a person with Alzheimer's.” Alzheimers Book:The Things We Keep Source: The Things We Keep
“They’re service dogs,” Norah said, without missing a beat. “So they have to stay with us.” Patel looked at the mutts dubiously. “These are service dogs?” “Yes,” Norah said serenely. One of the things that Alicia had always admired about Norah was the fact that she was a committed liar. Not to be confused with a good liar; Norah’s gift was the ability to come up with a lie on the spur of the moment and remain committed to it against all logic and reason. “For…?” The pause was negligible. “Irritable bowel syndrome.” The detectives exchanged a look. Hando, still stroking the dog’s chin, snorted. “You have service dogs for IBS?” “Of course.” HumorAnimalsDogsIbs Book:Darling Girls Source: Darling Girls
“She had a very specific routine that she had to follow if she was to have the slightest hope of drifting off.” SleepRoutineCreature Of Habit Book:Darling Girls Source: Darling Girls
“This was against the rules of her sleep routine, of course. It was too stimulating. According to an article she’d read, every minutes spent looking at your phone in bed delayed sleep by six minutes.” Sleep Book:Darling Girls Source: Darling Girls