The power of memory... missing you
This September, as the world celebrates Alzheimer's Month, the theme is to ask about dementia. Awareness changes everything because we almost know what to expect and what to do
Published: 04:09 PM,Sep 01,2025 | EDITED : 10:09 PM,Sep 01,2025
Eyes that twinkled when I came home. Now they look at me blankly.
No smile awaits me. Just silence. A doubt. Who could this be?
What do we talk about with a stranger?
Who knows nothing about you. The same questions are repeated. Enthusiasm can sometimes wear off.
You fed me once, I want to say. And ask, ‘Won’t you have one more piece of bread?’
It is your favourite soup. Your precious recipe from your grandmother.
Let’s take out the photo album one more time. For there lay faces you fondly remember. You know not; some have left.
And some are your darlings who are older. Sitting next to you. And missing you.
Alzheimer's disease is not something a patient alone suffers from. The whole family suffers because they slowly lose their family member. They might remember some people and might not recognise others at all.
Interestingly, the flower that is chosen to represent Alzheimer's is the forget-me-not flower.
We take our power of memory for granted. How often do we think of our childhood memories?
When the elders recollect and enthusiastically share their old stories, others might get bored. But actually, this sharing of stories might be a good sign.
That is why conversations are so important, as loneliness can be one of the biggest sufferings that could be going unnoticed in many people's lives. Today, of course, we seem to enjoy the company of gadgets, and our minds are fed and filled with images from reels on social media.
A person I know witnessed a fatal accident as a bystander, and the image of the victims being taken out seemed to be etched on his mind. Now this is something he would like to overcome, but now this memory also seems to be triggering an element of fear and sadness. It is ironic, is it not, how we want to forget certain memories?
Oman Alzheimer's Society has an initiative called Purple Cafe, a support system for caregivers of Alzheimer's patients. I remember a husband recollecting the first incident when his wife forgot her way back home. She drove and drove but just could not remember the directions to come back home.
This September, as the world celebrates Alzheimer's Month, the theme is to ask about dementia. Awareness changes everything because we almost know what to expect and what to do.
Memories are beautiful, and some of them are so wonderful that you want to cherish them forever. The sad part is that for some it is not a possibility. We can only imagine how difficult it must be for them not to find their loved ones amongst unfamiliar faces that surround them, not knowing they are the ones but not as they remember them to be.
They may not remember us, but there is no way we can forget them.
The Oman Alzheimer's Association was established in 2021 under the umbrella of the Oman Medical Association. It aims to support individuals affected by Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia in the Sultanate of Oman. The association works diligently to raise awareness, provide support, encourage practical research, and reduce the stigma associated with dementia, which can often be a significant barrier.
One important initiative of the society is Purple Cafe to provide support for the caregivers of Alzheimer's patients. The caregivers often suffer silently. The caregivers in most cases tend to be one of the family members with whom the Alzheimer's person might be comfortable. The caregivers would not think of complaining, but the reality is that they have to live the lives of two people. The caregivers also need support for their mental health.
The good part is, in Oman, Alzheimer's patients live with their own families.