Is it possible for beauty to exist alongside realities as distressing as dementia and as dreadful as death? Is it possible to write about such realities in a way that is both devastating and encouraging, that is both shatteringly sorrowful and heartbreakingly beautiful? Karen Martin’s Memorable Loss: A Story of Friendship in the Face of Dementia answers with a resounding yes.
Karen Martin’s friendship with Kathleen was perhaps a bit unconventional, not least because they were separated in age by several decades. Yet after meeting through the local church, they became fast friends. Kathleen served as a kind of mentor and confidante, but, as is true in the best of friendships, Karen reciprocated despite her relative youth. Their love and friendship grew through many years and many shared experiences.
Eventually, though, Karen began to notice some changes in Kathleen. She became less comfortable in social settings, less confident in making decisions, and more easily confused. And then came the diagnosis of that most dreaded of diseases: Alzheimer’s. Kathleen had never married and was thus without children to care for her. And so Karen and a couple of Kathleen’s nephews took on the responsibility of helping her through
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