Emma unlocked the front door and almost ran into the nurse.
– Oh, excuse me, am I late? How are you?” Emma asked quietly.
– Everything is fine, don’t worry.
– Thank you very much, no need to come on weekends, on Monday morning as always, – smiled Emma, – only I wanted to ask you, if it is possible, my husband and I are invited to visit on Monday, can you stay late? Or stay overnight?
– Don’t worry, of course I can, – put her hand on her shoulder, as if to be persuasive, the nurse, – well, I have to run? Because I had arranged to go early…..
– Yes, yes, have a good day, see you Monday, – and Emma closed the door behind the nurse.
– Mommy’s here,” Emma greeted in a thin, ringing voice of joy, “Mommy, I’ve been waiting for you, you haven’t come for a long time!
– I was at work, my darling, and I hurried to you at once.
– And what did you buy me? Did you buy me this, so delicious? Did you buy it?” her voice rang anxiously, with apprehension – what if you didn’t buy it?
– Ice-cream?” smiled Emma, “of course I did, but only after dinner.
– I did, I did,” the thin voice rang again with happy anticipation.
– And how did you behave, what did you and the nurse do?” – Emma sorted out the bags of groceries and at the same time asked mundane questions.
She straightened and thoughtfully looked at herself in the mirror.
From the mirror world a pretty woman with blond hair looked at her. She was said to look a lot like her grandmother, who had died before she was born.
In old photographs her grandmother was very beautiful.
Emma fixed her hair and smiled tiredly at her reflection…..
– Yes, I listened to Nanny, I behaved very well and Nanny even gave me candy after dinner! Am I good, Mommy? Yes? Tell me I’m good!
– Well done, of course you are,” said Emma affectionately.
– Mommy, why did you stop calling me daughter? Are you angry with me for something? Tell me, are you angry? Mommy? Tell me, why? I won’t upset you any more, just tell me!” the thin, weak voice demanded.
Emma imperceptibly brushed away the tears and smiled:
– “Well, my dear daughter, my dear, how can I be angry with you? What are you thinking? Let’s better wash our hands and have dinner. And then …..
– Ice-cream!” her joyful, happy voice interrupted her, “Mommy, thank you for buying the ice-cream!
– You’re welcome, my daughter,” Emma looked fondly at the sofa on which the thin, little old woman with blue baby eyes, her very old mother, was half-sitting – half-lounging.
With her skinny little hands she cradled her favorite old rag doll with a porcelain face, which now she never parted with.
– Give her to a nursing home; she does not know anything; you are wasting your life for nothing, you are throwing your time away! It doesn’t make any sense,” friends advised. “The nursing home has good care, there are nurses nearby, and you will visit her. Although, even this makes no sense. She doesn’t recognize you anyway! Thinks you her mommy, that is your grandmother, and nothing but her childhood, she does not remember!
Emma, what’s your point?
– Why should I need it? – Emma repeated in her mind the words of someone else, – is it possible to explain this to anyone?
And maybe this is her tired of life soul hides from the fear of the world going away from her.
How can I take away our life together, the life in which we love each other so much? No way in the world! Let her live this slice of her remaining life happily, in that world where she is a little girl again, and I am beside her – and even though I am her daughter Emma, let her think that this is her loving mother, my grandmother, whom I look so much like.
I don’t want to ruin that!”
– Mummy!” a thin voice interrupted her thoughts, “are you going to work tomorrow?
– No, tomorrow is my day off, and I’ll bake cakes and we’ll read.
– Thank you, Mommy, you’re so kind,” the thin voice was full of love and happiness, “I love you so much.
– And I love you so much, – whispered Emma, remembering everything she knew about her mother’s childhood and life, her old stories and her old pictures, from which the little and then young girl smiled at everyone, – I love you very much, too!
The woman left quite quietly, two months later, she just fell asleep with a happy smile on her face.
With skinny hands, covered with thin, wrinkled skin, she clutched her old rag doll.
Scattered beside it were pictures from her old album.
