Elderly people often "see" their ancestors or dead relatives. What does it mean?

i have reason to belief that as the brain is losing memories , as in shutting down / dying , at the very end the only images / memories left are deeply buried ones from near 70 years prior .
my mother was clutching for brother johnny on her death bed . 70 yra ago he was her shining knight .
edna has some day to day memory but shes been wiped back to about 1965 as of right now . thats 50 yrs lost , she hasnt much storage left . ill bet she ends up back at johnny too . he left the family dirt plot for a factory and babied his poor little sisters with the few bucks he could spare .

My mother tells me her aunt's come, stand by her bed and ask her why she's still here (on earth). I asked my mother what she tells them.My mother replied that she tell's her aunt's the good lord has forgotten to send for her and the devil doesn't want her.
She tells me they laugh at her answer.

I absolutely agree with the illusions of dead relatives coming to the bedside of people who are soon to join them. Most people seem to be comforted by the presence but ocassionally a spirit who has been harmed by the dying person is present and this causes great distress as in the case of Book's father. However in Book's culture there are many spirits that at least her family seems to be very aware of. Many cultures have different beliefs and these should be respected. I do not feel that these visits are hallucinations. Just my opinion and experience with the dying

My dad asked if his mother was there. He's not feeling well. Does this mean death is closer than we think? Do the elderly see deceased relatives even when not necessarily approaching death? He's in a nursing home and we see him declining.

I think people with dementia can ask about or see people from their past at any point along the way. My husband saw his deceased brother in the first year of his dementia and lived another nine years.

If your dad is declining and not feeling well, perhaps he is approaching death sooner than you had thought. But maybe not. Are there any medical indications that his time is short?

For some time before my friend's 79 yo husband died, he saw his parents with suitcases standing at his door. They had traveled a lot when he was a child. At night his Mother was at that doorway singing him lullabies. It gave his wife comfort to know there were people waiting for him.

Tell that to my dad. They are not being nice to him. Maybe karma. Either that, or we do have bad spirits that needs to be... expelled from here. I'd rather not do that. They might get even with me.

My mother sometimes sees people in her room who have passed and often a dog or cat. Among the pictures on her notice board is one of a cat. One day she told me when she dies she's going to have a cat like that and call it Karma. Weird as she has no idea of the concept of karma.

My mom who is soon to be 92 has severe dementia. She has had loads of surgery from bowel removal to a broken hip. The hospital and consultants are always amazed she has turned up for her poost op check. Until recently she has been fit but given the dementia a little unsure of who people are or where she is. In the last week she has become distant, often not appearing to be 'with' us and has started to see dead relatives. last night it was her mom. She also woke up with a bruise on her leg. No one knows were it came from but she said 'she hit me'.
My mom was always very handy with the smacks. Do not know about her mom as she died when mom was 12. I have a strong feeling that mom has a short time to live. No evidence and no clinical reason. Does anyone have any experience or knowledge to give me. I would like to be ready.