Ah, such sweet memories.

When I mixed with the dementia patients at Birchwood, I found that praise worked wonders. Much of the time. I remember Karen. She often called people she met “asshole.” Well, before Karen had a chance to say anything, I’d blurt out, “Karen, you look beautiful.” Or, “Karen, I like your blouse.” Karen then greeted me with a smile. And with a “thank you.” With others, humor works. I’d kid Frank about having a moonshine business down the hallway, in the broom closet. And he laughed. It’s amazing how much humor is retained by so many, many folks at the nursing home. And always, I’d go along with their reality. I let the talk flow. Naturally. In their direction. We helped each other. Pulled for each other. By using our imaginations. To make each other feel good. By stimulating each other’s minds. I tried to stimulate. And in return, they stimulated me. This stimulation thing was a two-way street. Wonderful. Wonderful. Wonderful. In so many ways, I find that talking to the dementia patients more rewarding than talking to so-called ‘normal’ people. In a sense, the patients’ worlds are more real than our own worlds. Real to them. Some of them don’t know any better than to believe in the impossible. Oh, so nice. And yes, there is sadness, too. But, I saw so much happiness mixed in. Life in a nursing home isn’t a complete downer. No, not by a long shot. There are lots of uppers, too. Every day, I saw opportunities to be joyful. I saw sunshine. Even when the skies were gray. And speaking of the weather. September and October in Minnesota is usually grand. Almost perfect. Mother Nature has been good. At least around here. So far, I couldn’t have choreographed a better autumn. Good weather for wheelchair rides. Outdoors. Jeanne and I used to go for wheelchair romps daily. I’d bring along a battery-operated tape player. Ah, such sweet memories. We listened to Vivaldi …to The Seasons…To Autumn. –Jim Broede