I Thought My MIL Was Careless — The Truth Broke My Heart
I asked my mother-in-law to watch my four-year-old, Micah, for a couple of hours. When I came back, he was sitting alone outside.
No note. No adult.
She answered my call cheerfully. “I just ran for coffee and a manicure. He wanted fresh air!”
He was four. Crying. Confused.
My husband, Rami, said she meant well. I said she wouldn’t babysit again.
Weeks later, on my birthday, Rami surprised me with a spa day. Halfway through, my phone exploded with calls from a neighbor.
Micah was outside. Again.
This time I asked her to leave, and my marriage cracked open. Rami thought I was harsh. I thought I was terrified.
Then another neighbor sent a note saying she’d seen Micah alone before. I realized people had been worried while I tried to keep the peace.
We banned unsupervised visits.
Two months later, her own neighbor called: she was wandering, confused, wearing mismatched shoes.
Diagnosis: early dementia.
Suddenly the forgetfulness, the bad choices, the denial — it all fit.
Weeks later she looked at Micah and asked, “Is he yours or mine?”
And I understood: she hadn’t been cruel. She’d been disappearing.
She lives in memory care now. When she sees him, she sometimes whispers, “Thank you for keeping him safe.”
I always answer the same.
“Always.”
