Husband doesn't know who I am more and more

I'm more bummed out than usual by this tonight, so I'm unloading here. It seems like it wasn't that long ago that it happened for the first time, then a few more times but I could still count how many. Now, I've lost track. And that's only the times I've confirmed he doesn't know who I am by actually asking him. When I tell him who I am and that we've been married over 34 years, he's surprised.

What clues me in is when he starts telling me stories about things that happened in our past, but as far as he is concerned, it's HIS past. That's when I ask him if he knows who I am, and he never does. I've suspected it other times based on the way he acts or looks at me, but I don't always ask. It strikes me odd that when he doesn't know who I am, he's still not concerned about who the "strange woman" is in his home.

Usually I take it in stride because I know it's the way things will go, but tonight I came close to tears. Maybe it's because one of the stories he started telling me was about our old dog who just died the first of this month. He said it made him want to cry. I want to cry for the loss of both of them.

Anyway, thanks for "listening." It's good to have a place to unload.