Notes from recent visit to my Mother in Hospice Care

My mother has been in Hospice care for a few months now. She is not at home, but being cared for at their facility near Thompson Park in Watertown, NY. My brothers and I never thought she would survive this long. I believe it was September or October when she became a resident. at first my visits to see her were to entertain her and help her escape the monotony of being bed ridden. We would converse and some times play word quiz games. She was able to help feed herself handheld foods such as sandwiches. She could hold onto beverages. Those days are over. She goes days and days without speaking, eating very little, and rarely opening her eyes.

My mother holds a cookie in December 2017. By now she was becoming less able to feed herself. 

A couple days ago she spoke and interacted with me for the first time in about two weeks. She isn't always lucid. On this day her eyes were open. She began speaking to me as if I were a toddler, cooing and baby talking to me. Several times she invited me to sit on her lap.

I ask her what she is thinking about: "Nothing, just enjoying the noise."

"We need to get a group and have a party," she says.

I asked her if she was hungry. "Yes, but I don't know what t have."
I'll go check what is for lunch.

She ate an entire bowl of chili and a peanut butter & jelly sandwich. With her first bite of chili she remarked, "That's good."
Haven't seen or herd anything like that from her in a long time.

" Have you had enough to eat?" I asked her. "More than enough." she says.

Out of the blue, with no context she says, "Two of them are my boys. They are good boys too. Their father was awful nice to them."

After I say goodbye she said, "It was nice spending time with you."

After weeks of basically to interaction with her, this was really something.