A little more than eleven years ago I asked the question “Will she ever get a chance?” She didn’t. Shortly after Dad died, Mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. She succumbed to it a few years later. Currently she resides at my brother’s house on the lower shelf of the china cabinet she protected from Dad’s unexpected, violent tantrums.
It’s so unfair.
Cedar Waxwing's 365 
This is also very sad. I’m hoping that your Mom found happiness, or contentment, or purpose, in things/ways that maybe you’re not aware of.
Yes, it is unfair. I like Helen’s way of thinking..
My mother developed dementia just a few years after my father died. I think the isolation/loneliness hastens it.
So sad. But this is a beautifully written piece, CW.
What Indigo said.