And the ability to recognise it, say hello and seek to understand it.
Having recently moved by grandma into my home because she has dementia and can’t take care of herself, it is starting to become a wonderful experience in understanding some else’s worldview and why they do what they do.
She doesn’t remember she has memory loss and here are a few pros:
She doesn’t remember how poorly she gets.
She doesn’t remember the embarrassment of need help all the time.
She doesn’t remember her limitations.
It’s a dementia filled haze of bliss.
To her, nothing has changed and no action required.
To us, everything has changed and much action is required. Action that isn’t always welcomed, acknowledged or gratified.
And it would be easy to slip into resentment mode, get annoyed, frustrated and stressed.
Then I remember:
She is living her version of reality, not mine.
Can you find someone who annoys you and take the brave step in seeking to understand their reality and how it differs from yours?
How did they create that reality?
How did you create yours?
What are the differences and where are the common threads?
What can you learn from each other?
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Abbie Pierce 