A Note to Katie

I know how difficult it is to stand by

And watch your loved one suffer.

Though the negatives seem front and center,

Don’t enter into it.  Find the positives instead.

Dwell on the good, leave dread unsaid.

Find a bit of joy each day.

Perhaps it’s a smile, a joke, a song, 

A peek at nature, a taste of candy,

While keeping that tissue handy

When you need to be alone.

Years ago I tread cancer’s path.

Now I’m walking the dementia lane. 

Step by step, hand in hand,

Knowing that I need to stand 

With comfort and love for Ray,

Just as you are doing with Bill. 

Katie, you and I have found a way,

The strength to trek through every day.

Mapping the jagged journey,

Setting the course with our hearts,

A caregiving voyage of love.

Ann Favreau is a retired educator who lives in Venice, FL.  She is a member of the Florida Writers Association, Florida State Poets Association and President of the Suncoast Writers Guild in Englewood.  She has self-published six books.  Her newest poetry collection The Dementia Spiral (2024) received a semi-finalist award from the Florida Writers Association Royal Palm Literary Awards.  Ann makes presentations to local women's groups and loves sharing her work with others.