The Swimmers

Part 5’s narration remains in second-person point of view but is now addressing Alice’s daughter as “you” instead of Alice. The daughter realizes, in hindsight, how many warning signs of Alice’s condition she overlooked before her dementia was finally diagnosed. Even when changes in Alice’s memory and behavior became fairly obvious, her daughter didn’t recognize their significance. In part, this was because of all the things Alice still remembered. She didn’t realize that long-term memories are more resistant to dementia in its early stages.

When Alice got confused or forgot things she’d once known well, her daughter acknowledges she was in denial that it meant anything. For as long as she could remember, Alice was always healthy, beautiful, and strong. It seemed unfathomable that anything could be really wrong with her. Gradually, however, she developed fixations. She complained about everything and hoarded nonperishables in preparation for a giant earthquake she’d long feared. She began to repeat stories over and over, especially stories about the Japanese detention camps in World War II. Once, Alice’s husband couldn’t find her. Hours later, he finally located her in the garage, sitting in the car, waiting to go for their Sunday drive.