LiVE MAGAZINE VOL 8, Issue #203 February 20th THRU March 6th, 2015

Blind Perspective
CHASM
By Michael Tapia
By Michael Tapia
February 2014, Palm Springs, California. I’m speaking on the phone with my mother. She is
now in her early 80’s and experiencing the onset of dementia and the side effects from the
medications to treat her diagnosis.
“Hi Mom, how’s my Mammy doing today?” I ask (Mammy is a nickname adopted years ago for
my mom).
“Your Mammy from Alabamy?” she jibes, “I’m fine mijo (pronounced meeho, Spanish for my
son) “How are you today?”
“I just ate dinner and thought I’d catch you before you go to bed tonight” I say.
“Oh, what did you cook for dinner tonight, mijo?”
“I cooked a medly of mixed vegetables, with red bell peppers and zucchini squash. Then I
added baked chicken and brown rice.
“It sounds like your momma’s cooking.”
“Yes Mom, remember when you used to cook that for me when I first went blind?
My Mom goes quiet for what seems like an eternity. I can tell she’s processing this information
and painstakingly forming a response.
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“Yes mijo, I forget that you’re blind sometimes. I don’t know why. I guess I’m getting old” she
says apologetically.
“No worries Mom. We all forget. I’ll be 59 this year and I have become forgetful myself.”
“59! How old am I now?” my mom asks.
“You’re past 80 Mom.”
My mom begins to laugh hysterically.
“What’s so funny mom?
“I thought I was 60 years old.”
“Well I’ve been told you still look really good
for your age mom but you were already 60
when I went blind almost 20 years ago” I
tactfully remind her.
Again a chasm of silence consumes the phone
line. “Thank you for calling me tonight, mijo. I
think I’ll go to bed now. I love you mijo”
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“I love you mom, sleep with the angels tonight”. I
hang up. I weep. The chasm of silence consumes
me.
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