Original subtitles

Previously on Serial.

Your mother needs to be in a facility

or have an in-home caregiver.

Find yourself a good woman.

Hey honey, what are you looking for?

Put it on!

Okay.

Freak.

Well, you can call me Uncle Tony.

Little Mabel?

[sighs

Excuse me ma'am.

Hi.

Yes, hi.

I uh, I have a list of these unique items

I'm trying to locate for my mother.

Oh, why aren't you the cutest thing?

Unique items, you say?

Lay it on me, dear.

Okay, well, first of all, I I need a a jar of lightning bugs.

Uh-huh.

Yeah, let's see.

A postcard from the uh,

the world's largest uh, rubber band ball.

mmh

uhh

Okay.

De-Dehydrated water.

Oh honey, you've got a special mission there.

Why is dehydrated water?

Uh It's kind of like water, but but you need to add water

It's for emergencies.

Oh, okay.

Oh, and, you know, you have a faulty bulb back there?

Oh, I guess I didn't notice.

Yeah, yeah, that's not good.

It it could uhh, cause an epileptic

seizure in certain individuals.

Oh, I'm sorry.

I read that somewhere.

I don't know.

Um excuse me, I need to make a phone call.

Of course.

Yeah Ma, I can't find any of these items.

Dehydrated water, Really?

Look, I'm coming home.

Yes, I got it.

I'm going a little bit.

Look don't forget to take your pill.

All right. Bye

I'm sorry.

That's okay.

My mother, she has me running all over the country

on a wild goose chase looking for these ridiculous items

I can never find.

It seems that.

I'm I'm sorry for wasting your time.

No worries at all.

Have a good night.

You too, thank you

Honey, we're closing up.

You gotta finish that cigarette.

You're a good son, taking care of your mama like that.

My mother recently passed away.

I'm heading down by the water to spread

her ashes tomorrow.

She loved the water.

It was her happy place.

I'm sorry for your loss.

Life's a journey, honey.

I know one day her and I will meet again.

You take care of your mama.

God bless you.

Shit.

Hey.

Fine seeing you again.

Yeah.

Got troubles?

Uhh, yeah.

It's not turning over.

Well uhh, I happen to be pretty pretty handy if I do say

so myself.

Why don't you uh, pop the hood and I'll uh, I'll give

her a look.

Mmh Okay.

I'm sorry, sweetie.

I never did get your name.

Harold!

Mmmh

Would you mind if I ran at the restroom quickly?

Not at all.

Hello?

Hey, I'm at Reseda Park in the bathroom.

There's a strange man here

that I met at the gas station earlier,

I think he followed me here.

What?

Stacy, what was that?

Stacy?

Stacy, what was that noise?

Stacy, answer me!

Stacy

What the hell is going on, Stacey?

Answer the phone!

Stacey.

can you answer the phone?

Sorry.

Oh my god.

I'm okay.

Stacey what's going on?

Stacey! Sta

Stacey!

Sta

Stacey, what's going on?

[Repeated Thuds

New Meister residence.

May I ask who's calling?

Staffing agency?

Yes. Yes, this is Harold.

I'm sorry.

Um, what type of work would this uh, this involve?

Santa Claus?

Would I have to get some sort of training or?

Sorry uh, yes, yes, uh, yes, uh, I I can do that.

Friday Works.

[Repeated Knocks

Will you hold on a minute?

I'm on the phone, god damn it!

I'm sorry, I'm sorry, yes, 1pm on Friday Works, I'll be there.

Thank you.

Have a good night now.

Well hello there, handsome!

I just knew that Hilda needed some company

and who better than her neighbor and bestest friend was.

Hi Betsy.

Mom is sleeping right now.

Oh, Harold, you've always been a bit too serious.

So uh, I just wanna come in and see if Hilda is doing okay.

You know, make sure that she's getting the care she deserves.

After all, good friends don't hesitate to lend a helping hand.

Look, Betsy, I uh, appreciate your concern, but Mother

is happy and healthy, and uh, I think you should leave.

She needs a rest.

Oh, Harold! I didn't mean to imply anything.

I just wanted to do the neighborly thing, you know?

And since I'm here now, why don't we all have a chat?

Exhales

Hilda?

Shhh.

Where are you, my dear?

Shhh Betsy.

Hilda?

She's sleeping.

Hilda?

You need to be quiet.

Hilda, Where are you?

I told you she's sleeping!

Listen here you little twerp.

I've been following you for weeks.

I know you are up to something.

And if those damn adult protection services people

aren't gonna do anything, I will.

Hilda!

Hilda?

Wait.

Hilda?

Betsy

Hilda?

Betsy

Hilda?

No

Hilda, where are you?

Shh. Shh

Wait

Quiet.

Shh. Shh.

Shh. Shh Shh

Tense Music Countinues

[Dramatic Music Plays

Meister residence, Harold speaking.

Yes, The position is still available.

Yes. Do you have any experience?

Nurse, that's great.

It's exactly what I'm looking for.

My mother has dementia.

I'd like to uh, hire someone as soon as possible.

I uh, I'm starting a temporary position this Friday at 1pm.

I I could uh, I could meet you at the public library at 3.30.

Is that work for you?

Great. Alright.

I look forward to it.

See you then.

Good night.

Bye now.

All right, Elena.

Hold on 1 second.

How you doing?

Mmmh

Okay.

I know you've been in a lot of pain lately,

but I have something here for you.

It's gonna make it,

all go away.

I made it myself.

My mother was always a vibrant and loving woman.

She was the epitome of strength and grace.

She was diagnosed with dementia,

shortly before the COVID lockdown.

I believe her symptoms

worsened as a result of being in the house all day.

She would just sit there all day long,

staring at the TV, driving herself crazy over it.

But, please, go on.

Well, Harold,

if life has taught me anything, it's that Sometimes the

greatest rewards come from those truly heartbreaking moments.

You see, my own mother battled Alzheimer's, and I witnessed

firsthand the uh,

the profound impact that love and understanding

can have on someone's journey with dementia.

She had me late in life.

She was 40, and then when she was 50, she had a stroke.

That brought uh, the dementia.

She declined pretty rapidly after that.

I was only

I was only 10.

In her final days, I promised her that I would

dedicate my life to providing care and compassion to people

like her.

So I became a nurse.

The hospital became my second home.

And it was great until,

until it wasn't.

Um, the uh,

Never-ending shifts and the emotional rollercoaster.

Watching the healthcare

system struggle to provide the care that people like her

really deserve.

But it lit a fire in me.

So when I saw your ad, I thought,

now here is a way I can make an actual difference.

I totally understand.

The uh, the system has failed my mother as well.

But uh, please continue.

Uh, well, at the end, she couldn't

even remember her own name.

But still, we had developed um,

I'm Sorry.

We had developed a sort of unspoken language.

And despite all the uh,

heartache, we still shared moments of joy and of laughter.

My mom taught me the power of presence, And that despite

their diagnosis, they are still in there somewhere.

Your story is truly inspiring.

I uh, I thank you for sharing it.

But uh, I'm interested in learning more about your,

your caregiving approach.

Absolutely.

Um, Well caring for an individual like

your mother, it requires more than just medical knowledge.

It requires understanding and creativity.

I like to foster

an environment that's filled with familiar sounds and music

and activities, things that can stimulate their memories.

Dementia, of course, can take away the memory, but it it cannot

take away the value of that human connection.

Eventually,

I'd like to start my own practice someday and train the

caregivers in these sorts of techniques but of course that's

further down the road.

I believe you possess all the qualities

necessary for uh, a caregiver, for my mother to uhh, reclaim her

independence in the home.

I uh, believe you've truly walked walked

the journey, and I I I'd be honored to take you aboard.

Uh, I feel obligated to let you know

that I have I have 1 more interview left to conduct,

but uh, I think it's fair to say that the job is yours.

Well, thank you so much.

Um, you you have all my information, right?

Yes, right here.

Okay. Great.

Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you.

Bye.

Have a good day now.

You too.

Thanks. Bye.

Background Motor Vehicle Accelerating

I got the job!

I mean I mostly got it.

Yeah, no he was so sweet.

It went really well.

I think he really loves his mother.

I'm so excited.

This is just perfect for me.

All right,

I'll pick us up s-s-some dinner on the way home so we

can celebrate, okay?

I love you, see you soon.

Bye.

♪ And she'll come over if you want to. ♪

♪ Say a little prayer for ♪

♪ your feelings if you need to. ♪

♪ You don't have to worry about ♪

♪ the way you feel when you're around me. ♪

♪ Cause I know you've ♪

♪ been hurting for a while so, ♪

♪ won't you calm down, won't you ♪

♪ calm down, won't you calm down. ♪

♪ Oooooooooo ♪

♪ oooooooooo ♪

♪ oooooooooo ♪

♪ oooooooooo ♪

Hi, I'm Mabel.

♪ And you come over if you want to, ♪

♪ say a little prayer for your ♪

♪ feelings if you need to. ♪

♪ You don't have to worry about the ♪

♪ way you feel when you're around me. ♪

♪ Cause I know you've been hurting for a while so. ♪

♪ Won't you calm down, ♪

♪ won't you calm down, won't you calm down ♪

♪ oooooooooo ♪

♪ oooooooooo ♪