Alzheimers At The Dog Park

I was watching my puppy at the dog park when two ladies walked in and asked to sit next to me. The older lady started to sit and the younger silently mouthed to me, “She has Alzheimers.”

The younger lady stood up and walked around playing with her dog. Lilly, the lady with Alzheimers, and I started talking.

Every time my dog came up to me Lilly would ask, “Is that your dog?” I’d tell her yes and she would tell me how beautiful he was and how she grew up with dogs and just loves being around them.

Lilly had a wonderful personality. She was in awe with everything.

As a plane flew overhead her voice perked up and she asking me, “Do you see that? Do you see that!? Isn’t it wonderful?”

She kept saying things like that. Everything was wonderful and beautiful.

Isn’t this wonderful? All these benches here to sit and watch the dogs.

Look at that beautiful black dog over there. Look at that big dog over there. Aren’t they beautiful?

Look at all the cars in the parking lot. They go from there (pointing to the far end of the park) to there (pointing to the other end). Isn’t that wonderful?

It was all new. Fresh. Lilly was simply happy with the beauty and wonder in everything.

We get jaded and blind to what’s around us. Imagine what it would be like to approach everything with new eyes… If you were curious about how unique everything is.

This is a wonderful mindset to hold when influencing others.

When it’s all new, you ask better questions. You listen with more curiosity. You don’t have any preconceived assumptions. You try anything because you don’t know what will or won’t work.

Approach today with an Alzheimers mindset. Don’t forget.