You trust your parents love you.

You trust your government to have your back.

You trust your partner to care for you if anything happens.

At least most of the time one of those is true.

I know a woman in her 80s with Alzheimer’s/dementia. Her husband has been caring for her for the last 15 years or so. And now, he’s bailing on her. He’s putting her in a memory care unit and moving to a different city.

In the past few years, it’s gotten worse, of course, as these things do, but no one guessed this outcome. He is just leaving.

It’s no wonder my kids don’t trust the world. Every time they do, they are disappointed.

And I wonder why this story bothers me so much. It makes me feel empty, exacerbates my loneliness. It puts me in a situation where I don’t want to feel things because I don’t trust them. I think that’s why it makes me so mad.

It’s not like the husband hasn’t shown that he’s a very selfish man his whole life, and that really, none of this should surprise. But it’s one of those things you want to believe, that after 65 years of marriage, you’re there for each other. But it’s not true. Not always.

That’s all that I can think about this week. I hope something else replaces it soon.

Peace