Cleo Childs Poetry

My mom was diagnosed with early-on set Alzheimer's when I was 21. The following years both flew and dragged by as she slipped like sand through my fingers. I was only 28 years old when she passed. She was only 66. It was in the depths of my grief when I first picked up my pencil and began to write about my mother, the journey of Alzheimer's we took together and the journey of grief I now walked alone. If there is one thing to know about my mother it is that she is a kind person. "Your mother was such a kind woman" is the phrase I heard repeatedly when telling friends and family about her passing. What a beautiful legacy to leave behind: kindness. My mother shines through me when I engage in kindness. I hope you will join me in honoring my mother's legacy of kindness by being kind to yourself and kind to others.