I gave my dying Grandpa an incorrect version of his favorite recipe to get him to admit he can’t taste anymore.

My Grandad used to make the most delicious ‘tater tot casserole’ and the whole family always asked him for the recipe so he could pass it down. <br><br>The thing is he never wrote it down. So he’d give them versions that weren’t the ‘real’ recipe so he could still bring his famous ‘tater tot casserole’ to family gatherings. He was known for it and he loved that. He always had a hard time saying no to people, and he did not want some of the people in our family bringing the real recipe to functions.<br><br>Anyway, he recently had a stroke that affected his tongue and now he can’t taste. He refuses to admit this, and to make matters worse, he is starting to decline cognitively a bit. <br><br>Easter was the first time he made this casserole (it’s always a family tradition) since the stroke. I knew he hadn’t written down the recipe and that it was all in his head, and I was curious to see if he could still taste. So every bite he took I asked him if it still tasted right, and he said it did. My grandma even asked him a few times, and he said yes. But anyone could tell it did not taste the same. <br><br>His health has since declined a bit more since then, and he won’t be cooking much anymore. I knew he’d never give me the recipe, and I honestly don’t think he remembers it anymore, so the next time he visited I decided to make the casserole. But what I made was actually the incorrect version he gave my aunt many years ago. <br><br>When he took a bite I asked him if it tasted like his, and he said yes, it was perfect. I kept asking, because I was starting to get a little upset he wouldn’t admit it. I said something like, ‘are you sure, I want to make sure I get it right, this is such a family tradition’ and he insisted it was right. So I asked him if I could ask him a weird question and to respond with just yes or no, and he said yes. Then I asked him if he still has taste, and he admitted no. <br><br>I understand why he didn’t want to admit it. It’s just one of the many many life changes that come with getting old. I’m pretty hurt he didn’t trust me enough to tell me the truth, and I feel like he keeps secrets from me (his favorite grandchild) and lies to me so much it’s actually beginning to feel like a game to him. <br><br>He went through a phase where he would create tasks for me to do that weren’t based in reality and were silly, just so he could laugh at me when I asked about the task he gave me but was actually made up. He would also try to get me to take pictures of things that were just ordinary household items, that weren’t really special, to prove I didn’t have a photographic memory, which I never claimed to have. <br><br>But I guess this is just what happens when people get older and don’t have anywhere to direct their energy.