I walked into the living room of our townhouse just as my 87-year-old husband, Hans, grumbled a string of words. “I can’t understand you,” I said, keeping my voice steady. He was speaking German again. Hans scowled.
“Use at least one English word so I’ll know what subject we’re on,” I said.
Hans spoke perfect English. We lived outside Montreal, in Quebec, Canada. But as his Alzheimer’s progressed, he increasingly reverted to the language he’d grown up speaking in his native Germany. Sometimes, it seemed as if he did it just to spite me. I didn’t know a word of German. One time I’d tried taping cards with German words onto various objects in the house, but I never got the hang of it.
When Hans did speak English, he used it to insult me. “Don’t touch those,” he snapped one night as I stood in front of the bedroom window, closing the blinds for the evening. “You don’t know how to use them. You’ll break them.” Did he really think I couldn’t operate a simple pull cord? I tried not to let my hurt show.
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Denne historien er fra May 2021-utgaven av Guideposts.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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In the Everyday
Cooking, cleaning, breaking up the kids’ fights... If only I had a few minutes for myself!
Worst-Case Scenario?
I’d had nagging injuries before and always recovered. Why wasn’t I confident that I would get better this time?
Honor Thy Son
I was a Marine officer, a lifer—or so I thought. Then came Patrick
Keeping It Real
In an age of social media, we're experiencing an epidemic of loneliness. Two friends who met online tell you how to grow an authentic connection
What You Wish For
She never wanted to see her abusive father again
God's Pillow
In 2016, the Soberanes Fire in Northern California was the costliest ever in the United States. It almost cost me my life, despite the promise I made to my wife
"I Heard You Praying"
As a hospital chaplain, I had seen hopeless cases. But never one more seemingly hopeless than this
"I Love You, Dad!"
Some of your favorite GUIDEPOSTS writers share what they learned from their fathers
Harold and Me
They’re nearly all gone now, the generation we call The Greatest.” This woman’s mission was to honor one of them
The Race Before Her
For this Olympic champion, success bred her greatest fear. How five verses set her free