If only I knew,
The phone calls,
The holidays,
Those few times a year I’d be graced with your presence,
If only I knew those would be the last of you,
If only I knew,
My last memory of you
I was holding your hands,
Soft, gentle, and warm,
Though you could not speak nor hear,
It did not matter we had touch,
Dementia did not take away your sense of feel and at that moment touch was the only important thing we could share,
I remember your hands because it was hard to look at your face,
and see you search for my name,
But you knew from that gentle touch that we were there and it was okay to say goodbye,
If only I knew that would be the last of you.