Life and Death

My mother-in-law is planning a visit to her sister-in-law's. I am resigned to be quiet and let her wait it out. The sister-in-law never actually gave a date for the visit and my mother-in-law knows this. This anticipation is purely within the matriarch's control. Not a thing I can do to prevent her disappointment...That sounds so negative but the matriarch's fury will not have me as a target. My husband tried to explain to his mother that his aunt would call with a date for a visit; the matriarch accepted this and continued with her plans. This isn't dementia or confusion; this is what happens when a person becomes terribly bored with their environment. I cannot entertain my mother-in-law everyday, all day. I don't know if she forgets or chooses to ignore the fact she lives in a house with 5 other people all of whom need some form of attention. I also wonder if she cares that she does have company around and music and life that continues to happen while she retreats into her room. I don't understand her kind of life. After 2 years here and 9 years as her caregiver in her old house, one would think I would be used to the way she lives. I am not; I see it as a kind of slow death.