We encounter secrets of life without any knowledge. These secrets reveal the answers of the journey of life. 
I was in Hollywood wrapping up my film project, “In the Closet”. Around that time, I was also planning to drive across country with my mother, documenting our family’s history. We visited a lot of family members and interviewed them. While spending time with my mother, I began to notice her abnormal behavior. She was struggling to articulate her thoughts and recall past memories. It was then when I realized there was something seriously wrong with her. Little did I realize, however, she was entering the early stages of dementia. 
Memory by memory the mom I knew is leaving me, it is truly the longest of goodbyes. Memories define what our life was and is to others. It’s the treasure that we pass on to our children, that becomes the legacy of who we were. As those memories fade, I create new ones. Though she may not be able to recall all of our past experiences she is present for our current ones and that is a joy within itself. Every day is a new memory that replaces a past one and my mother remains whole. As we take this last journey together, it is and always will be mama and me.