Mrs. Landon suffers from Alzheimer's Disease. It has taken over her life and caused her mind to become lost in confusion and the moments of clarity become fewer as the years go on. Her family struggles to make sense of who she has become and sometimes the outpouring of their love is not enough to bring her back to them. The memories they have of her and who she once was carries them between each heart-wrenching moment of their new realities while she finds joy in the most familiar simplest things, the flowers.
Mrs. Landon suffers from Alzheimer's Disease. It has taken over her life and caused her mind to become lost in confusion and the moments of clarity become fewer as the years go on. Her family struggles to make sense of who she has become and sometimes the outpouring of their love is not enough to bring her back to them. The memories they have of her and who she once was carries them between each heart-wrenching moment of their new realities while she finds joy in the most familiar simplest things, the flowers.
Mrs. Landon was in love with her new living room, the potted plants, the fluffy throw blanket over her chair; the accents were impeccable.
She wasn't entirely sure who the decorator was but if she ever ran into him again, she would surely thank him. In fact, as she sat back marveling at his handiwork she decided to see if he was still in the hallway; perhaps she could catch him.
She rushed out the door and darted her eyes back-and-forth until her eyes finally rested on him. Out of breath she excitedly placed a hand on his arm, catching him by the elevators.
He was such a handsome man, with crystal green eyes that grabbed her attention making her stop in her tracks. She could get lost staring into them for hours. He was tall too, so she had to angle her neck in such a way to look up at him.
He was startled to see her, clearing his throat as she said nothing because she just stood there, watching him. She realized how she must look so she hurriedly blurted out her thanks to him for the work he did. He beamed down at her his smile opening slowly revealing a perfect grin, his gratitude evidently painted over his features. When the elevator arrived, he just let it go turning his attention to her.
âYou have no idea how good that makes me feel,â he told her. Mrs. Landon did feel horrible though because she had been a tad rude to him a few moments before when he had sat in her room, but really, who could blame her? What strange young man just walks into an old woman's bedroom without so much as a knock?
How did he even get into the apartment? Anyone else would have thrown out such an intruder. But when she looked around and saw how enchanting he had made her home she realized that he was only there to decorate for her and thatâs when her anger had turned to gratitude.
It was as if she had been seeing her home for the first time. She could not keep her eyes off the fancy new wallpaper, the comfortable sitting room with fresh cushions on the chair. She had to thank him and apologize.
âOh, my dear boy, I am sorry! I must have gotten confused before. Here,â she rummaged through the pockets of her robe, âI must have a dollar in here somewhere. He reached down to calm her fumbling hands.
âNo need,â his velvet voice reassured. âHearing you thank me and call me âyour dear boyâ is really all I needed today.â His kind eyes gleamed sadness for a moment but then he smiled, and it was an infectious one.
He said he would see her again and Mrs. Landon was quite all right with that. When the elevator returned, she yelled after him.
 âWhatâs your name?â Thinned lipped he replied, âItâs John.â
She nodded, âWell John, I'll cook dinner sweetheart, so you make sure to come back soon.â He shook his head with that sadness in his eyes again and waved his farewell.
Mrs. Landon shuffled back to her room humming a long-ago forgotten song when she realized she lost a sandal somewhere. Her elation at her interaction with the decorator was suddenly gone. She was now flustered as she searched but to no avail. She spent several minutes looking for it once she was back in her apartment.
âI bet someone took it,â she muttered to herself. Just then a young woman in blue walked in triumphantly carrying the missing sandal. Her smile was warm with a humorous glimmer in her eye.
âMrs. Landon looks like I found it first today.â But she didn't return the girlâs smile instead she walked over and snatched the sandal from her. Now, who do you think you are barging into my apartment like this?â The young woman didn't seem to react, instead crossed her hands in front of her nodding.
âYou are absolutely right Mrs. Landon, but I saw your sandal in the hallway out there and I figured I would return it to you so you wouldn't spend time searching for it.â
She stood dutifully awaiting Mrs. Landon's response, but she just huffed and shook her head, darting it back-and-forth as she looked around the room, to see if anything else was missing.
âSo, are you the one that allowed the interior decorator access? I mean he did a good job here no one can deny that butâŚâ She waved her finger at the girl. âYou can't just decide to let anyone into my home without my permission. I pay my rent on time.â
The young woman took a moment to respond; the wheels in her head turning fast.
âWell ma'am I'm not sure to whom you're referring to, but I guarantee that you are completely safe here.â
 Mrs. Landon laughed, almost a cackle, as she placed the sandal back on her foot. âSafe? Who said anything about being unsafe? This is my place. I should feel safe here, shouldn't I?â
Mrs. Landon felt her heart race and her face get hot.
Just who did these young people think they were? The absolute nerve!
The woman tried to calm her by leading her to bed and speaking in soothing soft tones, but Mrs. Landon was irritated now, irked really, and refused to sit still. She waved her hand to stop the woman from touching her, but she accidentally hit her in the face.
The womanâs grip tightened on Mrs. Landonâs shoulders, so she tried to shake her body away from her grasp.
Just then two other people rushed in. Mrs. Landon screamed bloody murder as they tried to get her to lie down
âWho are you? How dare you come into my home? Get the hell out!â
 But they wouldn't answer her directly and instead spoke only to each other. Eventually, she was in bed against her will.
 âStop! Rape! Fire!â
More than one pair of hands caressed her hair. âItâs all right do not be afraid Mrs. Landon.
Afraid?
Of course, I'm afraid!
This is a nightmare and who in the hell is Mrs. Landon?
A sudden shock went through her arm then and she felt her energy fading, her mind racing but it was as if she was frozen because she could do nothing but lie there.
These bitches just shot me!
Please! Help!
But it wasnât worth screaming from her mind alone, her mouth unable to move. Her body was unable to fight off the intruders and no one would come because she could not be heard. She tried to scream, she wanted to show that they were no match for her.
But while they stroked her hair and spoke words that she could no longer hear, even though she tried against it, she fell into a deep fast sleep.
Â
~
The daily ad played on the lobby television. A nurse smiled brightly on the screen.
âOur Lady of Mercy Care Center is an assisted living facility combined with a rehabilitation center, also functioning as a long-term nursing home.
Our facility serves as a wonderful transitional place for residents who begin their stay at our rehab center then, if necessary, can move into the nursing home. We understand making these decisions can be stressful and confusing and we are there for you every step of the way.
We are a fully staffed facility, with unique offerings to our wonderful community of aging residents. Please call to schedule a tour today!â
Nurse Caldwell lowered the television and checked her watch as she reviewed the inpatient list and confirmed that there was indeed a room available. It was almost 6 pm and once she was off this call, she would do her rounds on her patients before dinner. She spoke on the phone to Mr. and Mrs. Hamid about the possible admittance for their son. Hearing about early-onset cases of Alzheimer's was never easy and his elderly parents seemed concerned and afraid. She did her best to reassure them.
âYou are more than welcome to come in for a tour and we can put your mind at ease about the type of care that your son would receive as a resident.â Mrs. Hamid seemed tired as her husband spoke for them both, gathering all the information they needed.
She confirmed with them what day they would come and hung up feeling sad for them but satisfied that she could provide them some sort of comfort. Most of the patients in the home were Alzheimerâs and Dementia patients but there were some hospice cases in the East Wing, but they had their own entrance for the privacy of the residents and their families.
The only commotion of the day so far had been when Mrs. Landon had gotten confused and had to be sedated. But that only happened on occasion, and she was asleep by now and there was still dinner to get through. They usually had a couple of commotions per day, either an emotional situation with a resident or a medical emergency but nothing the staff couldnât handle.
Nurse Caldwell had many conversations with family members of the residents. Some of them came in and couldn't make themselves go into the patient rooms right away and they needed to stand and chat with her or any of the other staff. She could tell that they needed to build up the courage sometimes before they went in to endure the agony of their family situation, whatever it may be.
She'd heard from Mrs. Landonâs son that she'd been some sort of famous landscape architect and he shared with her once how he finds comfort in his motherâs love for the garden because he knew it meant she was still in there somewhere.
Family members usually shared the rawest feelings of terribly difficult moments and she felt for each one of them. Sometimes those conversations brought back bad memories of when she lost her own mother to a long battle of breast cancer, but it was up to her and the rest of the staff to put everything in their lives aside and be there for the patients because in some cases they were all that they had.
I was drawn to this book by the beautiful cover, the intriguing title and the premise. Our memory is perhaps the most precious of our faculties and to lose it must be heart-breaking.
I was engaged from the opening chapter, as a result of the author's attention to detail and the way the writing flows effortlessly.
Mrs Landon's perspective has been captured and illustrated so well. Her fear, confusion and how hurtful it feels to hear people talking about her instead of to her. It was lovely to later get an insight into her life before Alzheimer's took hold. It was particularly nice to see that she had found love again in 'Old Joe'. I would have liked to read more about the power of music to evoke memories.
The beauty of this work is that it encapsulates the entirety of the situation. Not just how it affects the person with the condition but also their family, friends and caregivers. Her son, John, seems to cope so well being strong for his family, but I felt emotional when he broke down, as his mother uttered angry sounds they could no longer understand and when he reminisced about his childhood.
There is a touching moment where Adelaide realises she won't see her wonderful grandchildren become adults. Again, the author has done a great job of showing how the children felt and reacted to the change in their 'Grammy.' At first, little Addie can't understand why Grammy doesn't know who she is and the older children, David and Diane, seem to be bored as they are forced to visit. It was great to learn that their feelings ran deeper, with Diane organising a special event to promote Alzheimer's awareness and David thinking about how he'd confided in Grammy about his sexuality. How lovely that her friend Marsha ended up living in the same nursing home.
The final chapter was the perfect ending. Adelaide Landon may not remember who she was but she can still celebrate who she is now with those who love and care for her.
This worked well as a novella but there was enough potential material for a longer work.
I thoroughly enjoyed this read and will look out for more work by this author.