One thing any writer quickly learns is that the words you share aren’t always met with approval from others, especially family members. However factual a story that one relates might be, there is always a different perspective from another source. So be it. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and I respect that. Respect what I have to say as well.
The years in dealing with my late mother as she struggled with Alzheimer’s were beyond difficult, the same as it is for anyone standing helplessly by as the disease creates a stranger where a loved one once stood. It was during that time that I made the decision to document every incident and write my book of memoirs. I don’t have to get long-winded about the amount of detail that goes into writing any book but one must always state the facts, without exaggeration, without innuendo and without malicious intent. But, for me, there are times when some undercurrent of anger becomes pervasive.
I have journals with endless notes that chronicle my late mother’s medical and other issues as well as any interactions with her siblings. Here on my blog, I’ve shared several chapters of my book and it was no surprise to me when a ghost-relative landed on a particular post while doing a Google search and elected to voice their opinion. They were certainly entitled to do so but…the facts remain and I firmly stand my ground with anything that I’ve written.
There are always multiple sides to any story and people will believe what they choose, what makes them feel justified in a given situation. As family relationships ebb and flow, the emotional tide of reason is anything but constant. Enter an illness and all too often the confusion and fear associated with fleeting mortality tends to impact sensibilities. Blood connects us as families, for the most part. Years without communication drastically changes those dynamics.
That is… until curiosity is piqued by an Internet search.
From Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop…Update and republish a blog post you wrote during the month of May in a previous year.
I wrote this post in May of 2012. Nothing has changed since then and it never will. Mixing memories with any so-called perspective involved doesn’t result with the true facts of many situations. Especially when it comes to already-fractured families and, sadly, when a serious illness is involved. What should bring people closer together often widens the rift of separation.
