I watched a NOVA program highlighting the Alzheimer's disease. It reminded me of a dream where I had Alzheimer's myself...very scary and vulnerable. I wrote this short story, which was the essence of my dream. Science has found a gene responsible and are creating drugs to conquer the effects. But it is a slow process to find a cure. Meanwhile, people may forget, but they should not be forgotten.
Trudy sat on the park bench
reading a pamphlet about local attractions. She looked up from reading...a
pain flew through her body. Wait a minute. Where
am I? She tucked the pamphlet back into her purse. She examined a group of
people across the green-space. I came
here with my son, but I don’t see him. Those people seem familiar but I don’t
want to embarrass myself by not knowing their names.
The appropriate thing to do was go
back to her son’s car to wait for him. She stood up and walked toward the parking
garage. As she entered the parking garage she stopped abruptly.
What level was the car on?
She started
up the second level and then turned around to peek across the hoods of the
vehicles. Where is the car? A flash
of fear took hold of her. What kind of
car did I come in? She watched a man put luggage in his trunk, and stood
still as others made their way to their car. But she had no idea where she
should go. She took a deep breath and pressed her hand to her chest. I’ll go back to the party. Someone will
know where my son is.
Trudy left
the garage and walked quickly across the street to the restaurant where she had just been awhile earlier. She entered and went to the back where several cliques of people
still gathered. She moved to the back hoping someone would stop her to chat.
When she got to the rear of the room and no one had made the effort to speak to
her - panic began to set in. She turned around and scanned the room for someone
familiar.
I don’t recognize anyone here. I…must get
back to my son.
Trudy exited the restaurant and
stood at the curb. She glanced up and down the street. What if he doesn’t show? How
will I get home? She rifled through her purse to find her drivers license.
“Oh, here
it is. Of course! 1375 16th St. I’m so silly. How could I forget
where I have lived for decades?” She
put the license back into her purse and scanned the area nervously.
A man in a
suit in his forties came close. “Hello. Are you alright? Did you lose
something?”
Trudy put
on a brave face. “Oh hello. No, I am just fine. I am waiting for my son.”
“Okay. Just had to ask.” The man smiled and
turned to leave.
She kept
her eyes on him for a moment and felt the pit in her stomach well up.
***
Back in the
restaurant, Penny, a young waitress was serving coffee to a few locals. She
looked out through the picture window for the fifth time in an hour. Finally,
she paused and starred at the older woman.
“What’s up
Pen?” said a local guy named Big Bob.
“That lady
by the curb has been standing alone for over an hour.”
Big Bob
brushed crumbs off his large belly and looked over his shoulder. “Yeah, she’s
probably waiting to be picked up…or she’s lost.
Penny held
the coffee pot in the air. “Something is not right.”
“Female
intuition?” he asked.
“Yeah,
something like that.” She spilled a little coffee on the table, then quickly
wiped it up. “I’ll be back in a minute, guys.”
Penny took her
break and walked outside over to the woman. “Are you waiting for someone, Ma’am?”
Trudy
turned around. “Yes, sweetie. My son.”
“Oh. I ask,
because I work in the restaurant and noticed you’ve been here awhile.”
Trudy gazed
out into the street, then back at Penney. “I hope he hasn’t been in an accident?”
“I’m sure he’s just delayed. I’m Penny." she said, reaching out a hand.
Trudy
looked around, then shook Penny’s hand.
“What’s
your name, Ma’am?”
“I’m Trudy.
Trudy Diefenbaker.”
“Nice to
meet you, Trudy. It’s a little chilly out here. You can take a seat by the window in the restaurant and wait for him there?”
Trudy nodded. “I’m sure that would be okay.”
Penny
escorted Trudy to a booth with a good view of the curb, then went to the bar to
get a fresh pot of coffee. The owner walked out from the back, wiping his apron. He
was a large man, with a large paunch and a puzzled frown.
“So what’s
up, Pen?”
“This is
the third person this week who seems to be lost. I don’t get it. Is something
in the water?”
“There may
be some truth to that. My sister is a social worker and works downtown at the
police station. She said the police have picked up about a dozen people who
were sleeping on the park benches.”
Penny
stared at him blankly. “What’s so odd about that? Transients are all over the
place downtown.”
“Yeah, but
these people weren’t homeless. They were respectable citizens. She told me all
of them forgot who they were with and where they should go. One guy is only in
his mid forties. The police were chocking it up to early onset Alzheimer’s. ”
Penny
nodded. “Well that makes sense.”
“It would,
except for one thing. I went to a class reunion with that same guy the other
week and talked to him. He sounded as clear as a bell.”
“Could
Alzheimer’s creep up on you that fast?”
He
shrugged. “I don’t know. But it sounds pretty fishy to me.”
Penny took
out the fresh pot from the coffee maker. “That woman is waiting for her son. She may
not have a memory problem at all - just a little lost. But if he doesn’t
return, what should we do with her?”
“Call
social services I guess. Let’s give her some time first.”
“That’s
what I was thinking.” Penny took the coffee to Trudy, who was staring out at
the crowd. “Still hasn’t showed up yet?”
Trudy
looked up and smiled politely. “No, he hasn’t. I’m sure he will be here soon.”
“Yeah. He
was probably just delayed. So what’s your son’s name?”
Trudy drew
a blank then started to recall. “It’s B…Bobby. Yes, Bobby.” She shook her head.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I never have a problem with names. You’re
name is Penny and I just met you.”
“Oh don’t
worry about it. It happens to the best of us.”
Trudy
sighed. “I suppose so.”
Penny
patted Trudy’s hand. “How about if Bobby doesn’t show up, we take you to the
police station?”
Trudy
pulled her hand away. “Why? I haven’t done anything.”
“No, no. I
just meant that he may be detained or even hurt. This way you could be
available if they need you to be with him. Who knows, he may be at the station asking the police to find you.”
“Those are
good reasons to leave, but I would rather just stay here thank you.”
Penny
smiled sweetly. “Okay, Trudy. I’ll be available if you need me.”
Trudy
returned the smile, then looked out the window, up to the curb, at endless
flow strangers.Penny also looked out the window. Who and how many more would be next?
In the NOVA episode, they discovered the largest family to have contracted the disease in Columbia. Almost 50% of the people in the family had a gene traced back to one man, a conquistador from Spain. Needless to say, scientists are testing these new drugs on this family to prevent the onset of Alzheimer's from devastating the surviving members.
