When You Were Mine

Before there was Alzheimer's, there was adventure. Fish were caught. Frogs were captured. Hitchhikers were rescued. Stories were told around a backyard fire, marshmallows roasting over the flame. Those stories and the woman at the heart of them become an anchor when Maribeth begins to realize that her mother is changing. At the same time, Maribeth is raising three young boys. Her days are filled with baseball practice, sibling squabbles, birthday parties, and the everyday work of motherhood. As her mother's Alzheimer's progresses, she finds herself pulled between two generations, struggling to be fully present for both. Moving between present-day caregiving and memories of her mother's girlhood, her own childhood, and early motherhood, When You Were Mine explores how memory, identity, and love endure even as comprehension fades. The stories her mother shared filled with resilience, humor, adventure, and unwavering love become more than cherished memories. They become a guide for navigating the years ahead. Together with her siblings, Maribeth faces the difficult decisions familiar to so many families living with Alzheimer's. She wrestles with fear, guilt, denial, and grief, discovering that joy and heartbreak often exist side by side. More than a memoir about Alzheimer's, When You Were Mine is the story of what happens when motherhood and daughterhood collide. It is a story about the sandwich generation, about the shifting relationships between parents and children, and about the ways family stories become our inheritance. Heartfelt, honest, and ultimately life-affirming, When You Were Mine celebrates the enduring bond of families and reminds us that while memory may fade, love and the stories we share can carry us forward.