Dan Hutchinson, 66, left his job as a truck driver in Texas and moved back to his childhood home in Chillicothe, Missouri to care for his aging parents, Letha, 97, and Bill, 92. Letha is in a nursing home suffering from Alzheimer’s and Bill is barely living without her.

Dan remembers his mom as an avid gardener and very active around the house. The disease has turned her into someone he doesn’t know. “I’m not ready for it. It’s hard to deal with,” he said.

Dan drives his dad to the nursing home twice a day. Bill walks bent over on his cane with a determined strut. Dan stares out the windows of the long hallway. He would rather be somewhere else.

Bill slides a chair next to Letha at her dining table. She is angry and will not eat. Bill, a man of few words, asks her if she is hungry. She scowls with attacking words. It is the disease talking.