My mother has been away staying with my sister. For the first few days I feel disoriented, as if there’s something I should be remembering but can’t. Gradually, the feeling fades. I am letting go of all that extra memory capacity I need to compensate for what she’s lost. More immediately, I can abandon the search for what she calls her “zapper” – the TV remote control.

Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2007/may/12/familyandrelationships.family10