Since the move, Anna has been unhappy and very disoriented. He has asked that he be moved to a hotel. He has stated many times that he feels abandoned. His walking has reduced and sleep increased.
My visits with him have become longer, hoping that I will be able to cheer him up. We discuss politics and the weather. I plan meals with more variety. Add more sweet things to his diet, specially cold melon and chocolates. But all this hasn't helped much.
One of the evenings after his move, I persuaded him to walk in a small brown patch behind his flat (I am still to find a gardener that can covert it to a green area). After a short walk, we both sat on a bench and chatted about the weather.
Suddenly he says "Pass your palm over my hand"
I am not sure what he is thinking, but like any obedient daughter, I do as he asks.
I move my palm over his overturned hand, from the tip of his fingers to his forearm, not once but twice.
Anna gives me a sideways glance and asks, "What does it feel like?"
I am confused. It feels like a hand of an old person - thin skin, a little rough with wrinkles and dry skin, smaller than my hand.
So I say, "Like your hand".
Duh! My intelligence is really shining bright!
He looks at me and says, "No. It feels like a corrugated sheet"
I look at his hand, veins and bones standing out, and realize that it is the perfect term to use.
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