A Caregiver Left Behind

Today I am reminded once again that Romeo is leaving me. He has already left me. His fogginess of mind continues in spurts...more spurts, longer spurts.

Many times while I visit Romeo, he is foggy and confused, disoriented, hardly there. His body is there, like a tiny infant, just there. But Romeo himself, his mind, is off somewhere else.

I wonder whether on some level Romeo notices I'm there, if he's aware that anyone is around, close to him. I wonder if he can sense his body, if he can feel himself picking up the mug of tea on the table in front of him, if he can taste the tea, if he can hear the music playing in the background, if he can see that I'm there, if he can see anything.

In the past Romeo has told me that during these foggy periods, he is aware that he has a body but he doesn't sense much of anything. He is in no physical or emotional pain. He's simply there.

So, what to do? What do I do, what should I do, when Romeo is away in his fog? I do nothing. It seems that the best thing to do is simply sit with him. And that is what I do.