When my mother began to fear the darkness, I knew something was wrong, as she was one of those people who admired the stars and every day showed me how beautiful the moon looked in the sky. Being diagnosed with Alzheimer's demonstrated how easily a mind can change when it struggles against the truth of the facts it faces. She started having hallucinations in which she saw people trying to break into her house. Fearing open doors and windows as it grew dark and constantly imagining situations was very difficult, both for her and for our family, because, although we might say otherwise out of moralism, putting ourselves in her shoes is quite hard, even knowing her mind is no longer the same.
Her fear of the dark grew sharper. I truly didn’t understand it, because to me it seemed illogical. Why fear the darkness when the real monsters hide in broad daylight with a smile and charming words?
Fearing the darkness isn’t entirely wrong either, but, objectively, we should fear the light of day more, as we tend to trust what we see rather than what we feel, and the emptiest words can seem true if they come from the lips of those we trust.
Even today, though it may seem illogical knowing she can no longer store new memories, we struggle to ease her fears, but for someone with this disease, it is incredibly difficult.
