Current Events > So my dad has dementia...

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My mom and dad divorced when I was about 1. My dad was on drugs and was an alcoholic. My mom wanted to get me away from all that, so she walked away from the marriage. A couple of years later, we moved from Pensacola, FL to Austin, TX because of my mom's job.

I'd go visit my dad here and there as a kid and felt really close to him in those days. As the years went on, I became less and less attached to him. Like... I never even knew how old he was until a couple weeks ago when my mom told me what year he was born. My dad told me that I had a half sister when I was 17. I know who she is and we're friends on Facebook, but... We're not close at all. We might as well be strangers. She has an even worse relationship with my dad than I do. She won't even speak to him and didn't let him attend her mother's funeral. I don't really feel that much of an attachment to him these days, but I'm cordial and talk to him on the phone here and there.

He has been in the hospital for the past few days. He has stage 4 kidney disease and a large mass on his liver that they determined to be benign yesterday. He also just walked right out of whatever hospital he's in at some point and they couldn't find him. He called one of my cousins and was eventually convinced to go back.

Before that, he had been going to the bank every day for a couple weeks. He'd withdraw all of his money, count it multiple times, then put it back in the bank.

One of my cousins told me that since I'm his only son, I would have to make the decision about whether he gets put in a nursing home or not. I really don't even want that responsibility for someone I haven't been very close to for so long...

*sigh*
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If you're not very attached then you shouldn't have a problem making the right decision.
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