My mom called me by my father's name - how should I go about it?

[Sun_Kim-Ai]

Today it was her birthday, and although it went quite well, she went off on her own to "collect her thoughts".

Now we were sitting drinking and talking, and she had quite a few, and she opened up and cried about my father and my sister's deaths, and then went on about all her regrets in life and the things she's nostalgic for. During this, she called me with my father's name three or four times.

Everyone always said that I do resemble him quite a lot, just taller and with darker hair. I was thinking of just pretending it didn't happen, and I didn't say anything, but I wonder if she did this because she was drunk, if she saw me as him or it was just a lapsus on her part.

[TrueConfection]

She was drunk. Sometimes I rattle through all my kids' names and the pets' names before the correct one comes out. It a mouth thing, I know who's who.

[TrueConfection]

Also, I don't drink. 😂

[TrueConfection]

Thanks for the MHO ❤

[OlderAndWiser]

I would not mention it. She was drunk.

[Sun_Kim-Ai]

That what I was thinking of doing.
She always used to do that when I was younger - getting drink and then crying on my shoulder - but last night she really unloaded everything she had bottled up.

[OlderAndWiser]

She may be confronting her mortality and starting to think that she needs to tell you things now, while she still has the opportunity.

[Sun_Kim-Ai]

That's a good point. The scare of a few days ago shook her further.
She also said she's afraid she'll end up outliving both me and my other sister for some reason.

[OlderAndWiser]

Grazie per MHO!

[Sun_Kim-Ai]

You are welcome.
I didn't mention it, but she the day after she sort of apologized about it for her venting.
She said it's not right she uses me as an emotional surrogate of my father.

[OlderAndWiser]

That sounds like an important admission from her!

[Sun_Kim-Ai]

Hopefully... this is not the first time she makes such admissions and then relapses in her old habits, although she did mellow out in the last years.